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Vijay Mallya loan recovery controversy: Vijay Mallya, long criticised in India for alleged fraud and massive loan defaults, has once again pushed back against what he calls “blatant discrimination”. This time, he was responding to an X post by RPG Group chairman Harsh Goenka, who sparked a debate by questioning the continued demonisation of Mallya, despite major loan recoveries.
“Vijay Mallya lived the high life, yes. Defaulted, yes. Unlike most others, his Rs 9,000+ crore dues are now reportedly settled,” Goenka wrote. He pointed out that several other defaulters have walked free with far larger losses to the banks. “If dues remain, the banks should clearly say so. If not, why is he still a political punching bag? Justice must be fair, not selective,” Goenka said in his X post.
Mallya, former Kingfisher Airlines boss and ex-owner of RCB, quoted Goenka’s post and responded: “Thank you Harsh. The Union Finance Ministry has confirmed in writing that banks have recovered Rs 14,100 crores from me against a DRT judgement debt of Rs 6,203 crore. Why the blatant discrimination?”
Goenka reacted to Mallya’s response with a simple folded hands emoji, and the conversation quickly picked up steam across social media platforms.
However, the post split opinions. Some agreed with Goenka and Mallya, questioning why the case continues if the debt is recovered. Others weren’t so forgiving. One user bluntly asked, “If true, then what’s stopping Vijay Mallya from returning to India?”
This online debate traces back to Mallya’s post celebrating Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s long-awaited IPL win. Mallya had shared his emotions on X, writing, “When I founded RCB, it was my dream that the IPL trophy should come to Bengaluru… I had the privilege of picking the legendary King Kohli as a youngster… Finally, the IPL trophy arrives in Bengaluru. Congratulations and thanks again to all who made my dream come true.”
His post was met with mixed reactions – admiration from RCB fans, but also heavy criticism from others calling for his return to India.
In his defense, an X user, @Broufus, wrote: “The fools who keep asking Vijay Mallya to come back and pay the loans in the comments are the idiots who have destroyed the country… Vijay Mallya is one of the greatest sons of Karnataka and India… The company that went bust was Kingfisher Airlines… He offered a one-time settlement to banks, but ‘56’ wanted to make an example out of him,” he wrote.
Mallya replied to this rare defense with appreciation, “Many thanks. You are one of the very few who are knowledgeable and state facts… True that the Banks have recovered Rs 14,100 crores from me against the Judgement debt of Rs 6,204 crores… There are no criminal charges against me other than for bounced cheques which I did not even sign!”
But the back-and-forth didn’t end there. When another user asked chatbot Grok to fact-check Mallya’s claims, the AI stated that while Mallya’s recovery figure aligns with the finance minister’s statement, charges by CBI and ED for fraud and money laundering remain, and his extradition is still pending.
Unsurprisingly, Mallya didn’t let that go unanswered either. “@grok is wrong,” he wrote, clarifying that the extradition request was made before the money was recovered and thus irrelevant now. ED charges were only towards bank dues and the Government has admitted in their annual report that ED recovered and restored money to Banks, so money laundering charges go out of the window.”
He also insisted that CBI’s charges of improper borrowing from IDBI Bank lacked any real proof, and that even IDBI had been fully repaid. In his concluding note, Mallya urged transparency, “Ask the Banks led by SBI for a statement of account and to demonstrate what they recovered and when and if even a single rupee is now due. This one-sided narrative against me has to stop.”
