External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Monday revealed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed displeasure to his British counterpart Theresa May last month on UK courts raising a finger on the condition of Indian jails during the extradition trial of fugitive liquor baron Vijay Mallya. Modi, who attended the Commonwealth Heads of Government summit last month in the UK, told May that these were the same prisons where erstwhile British colonial rulers had imprisoned Indian leaders like Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru. "These are the same jails where you (British) had kept Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and other top Indian leaders," Swaraj said while responding to a question on efforts being made for the extradition of Mallya, who is wanted in India on charges of fraud and money laundering allegedly amounting to around Rs 9,000 crore. READ | ED likely to move court to liquidate Vijay Mallya’s assets The minister said the PM also raised the issue of delay by British authorities in sending back Indian fugitives. "He also told her that when our fugitives come here (Britain), it takes time to send them back," Swaraj said, while asserting that a UK court's decision to uphold Karnataka’s Debt Recovery Tribunal order on freezing worldwide assets of the ‘king of good times’ was an encouraging move and banks could go ahead and make their recoveries. While delivering the verdict, the UK High Court had said on May 9, 2018, that Mallya could be regarded as a "fugitive from justice". "We have sent the extradition request to the UK. Among the cases going on against him in the courts, one case by SBI-led consortium that had 12 Indian banks has been won," Swaraj said. READ | Vijay Mallya can be regarded as ‘fugitive from justice’: UK HC Mallya's lawyers have been opposing the Indian government's plea for extraditing him, citing poor hygiene and overcrowding in Indian jails. A UK court last month admitted the bulk of the evidence submitted by CBI against Mallya in connection with his ongoing extradition trial. The Westminister Magistrate’s Court extended the former Rajya Sabha MP's 650,000 pounds bail until the next date of hearing on July 11. If Mallya is extradited, he will be kept at Barrack 12 of Mumbai Central Prison on Arthur Road.
