5 ways India failed to clip Kingfisher Mallya's fraudulent wings

The Ethics Committee of the Rajya Sabha wants the absconding liquor baron Vijay Mallya to be expelled from the Upper House. Showing utmost sincerity and urgency in dealing with the matter, the committee met on April 25 - the very first day of the second phase of Parliament's Budget Session - and gave just a week's time to him to reply. The panel will meet again on May 3.

In all probability, Mallya, who has defaulted on the repayment of Rs 9,400 crore loan to various banks, will be expelled from the Rajya Sabha before his second term comes to an end on June 30. One could only wish if not just the Ethics Committee but also several official bodies had shown the same urgency several years ago, things would not have come to this pass.

Had all the agencies concerned performed their duties honestly and efficiently, Mallya would neither have become an MP, nor would he have been successful in cheating the country or making a mockery of the whole system.

But this is how all of the institutions failed in clipping the Kingfisher's fraudulent wings:

1. Election Commission of India

Mallya, whose Kingfisher Airlines has defaulted on loans of more than Rs 9,400 crore and is facing legal proceedings, appears on the electoral rolls of the United Kingdom (UK) with his country home in Britain. While Mallya is certainly guilty of not disclosing this fact, the Election Commission, too, erred in taking the "king of good times" at face value and not verifying his claims.

Mallya filed affidavits before his election to the Rajya Sabha in 2002 and 2010. He also filed his assets and liabilities in 2011, 2012 and 2014 but he hid the fact that his name appeared in the electoral rolls of the UK, which means he is a British citizen. As India does not permit dual citizenship, Mallya did not qualify to contest the Rajya Sabha election.

In fact, the EC failed to act even after receiving definitive complaints regarding Mallya's spurious affidavit. Former bureaucrat EAS Sarma had requested the EC to register a criminal case against Mallya for filing a false election affidavit, but to no avail. "I have been addressing the Election Commission of India (ECI) since 2013 regarding a false affidavit filed by Vijay Mallya, in which he had failed to disclose the offshore accounts he held. In my letters, I had provided adequate evidence of the fact that Mallya held offshore accounts about which he had failed to make a disclosure in his affidavit," Sarma, former secretary at the Centre, said in a letter sent to chief election commissioner, Nasim Zaidi.

2. Rajya Sabha Secretariat

Parliament, and in this case, the Rajya Sabha Secretariat, scrutinises all application forms and affidavits submitted by the candidates. Their office vets the credentials even of journalists and sends them for background checks to the Union ministry of home affairs (MHA) and other agencies. In his affidavits, Mallya claimed that he possessed a Ferrari car, gems and jewelleries, but did not own any building (commercial or residential), house, apartment or land anywhere in the world, which were, obviously, blatant lies. He also lied under oath that he had not taken any loan. Had the secretariat of the Upper House minutely checked the details filled by the defaulter, they could have found the glaring lacunae in them. They could have raised questions and referred them to other agencies. But, in this case, it seems, they simply ignored this vital part of vetting.

3. Congress, JD(S) and BJP

In fact, with no one lies greater responsibilty over the Mallya embarrassment than the political parties which are crying hoarse at present. Be it the Congress or the BJP or even former prime minister HD Deve Gowda's Janata Dal (Secular), all of them are equally to blame for promoting Mallya and ensuring his entry into the Rajya Sabha. He won the support of the Congress and the JD(S) in 2002 and of the BJP and JD(S) in 2010. On both the occasions, he won as an independent candidate. In his first term, Congress' SM Krishna was the chief minister of Karnataka, while in 2010 BJP's BS Yeddyurappa headed the state government.

Now, all the parties regret having supported him. But it is no use crying over spilt milk.

During Mallya's heydays, in fact, politicians competed to get his favour and attention. His "Parliament Express" - flight to and from the national capital on a daily basis during Parliament sessions by his personal aircraft - was a hit among the MPs. Praful Patel of the NCP and Suresh Kalmadi of the Congress were among those whom Mallya obliged quite often.

4. Security and investigative agencies

Mallya has a long history of dodging the law enforcement and economic intelligence agencies. His affidavits demonstrate he is just as unreliable as an industrialist too. He has five cognisable offences pending against him. They pertain to violations under several provisions of of Foreign Exchange Regulation Act (non-appearance before Enforcement Directorate in 2000), Wealth Tax Act (delayed filling of Wealth Tax Returns for assessment year 1988-89), Negotiable Instruments Act (cheque bounce of interest warrant of erstwhile McDowell Krest Finance), Indian Penal Code (sections 419, 420 etc) and Bengal Excise Act (fabrication of import licence).

The police (Central as well as state) and Intelligence Bureau also conduct background check of candidates. However, they failed to alert the Election Commission or the Rajya Sabha Secretariat about Mallya's questionable credentials. Or, did the political parties were just too willing to cast a blind eye to the many con jobs of the industrialist so as to bag the plum seat next to the self-proclaimed "King of Good Times"?

5. Courting delays

All the cognisable offences committed by Mallya, as old as those occurring in 1987, are pending in court. For instance, in the cheating case, the Calcutta High Court had stayed all proceedings in 1987. Since then, the matter has been pending. The violation of Wealth Tax Act is also in the waiting list, again in Calcutta High Court, since 1992. Had the matters been settled early and had he been convicted, political parties would have been wary of supporting him in 2002 elections. In the FERA violation case, the Supreme Court has granted leave in the matter in 2009. However, it is pending for the last seven years. Had it been settled early, Mallya would been disqualified much earlier, like Rasheed Masood of the Congress and RJD supremo Lalu Prasad for getting convicted in court.

The politicians, drunk on hypocrisy, are now showing uncharacteristic haste in expelling liquor baron Vijay Mallya. The same political parties which promoted him for years are baying for his blood. Had they cleaned up his dirt then, they would have been spared the current ignominy of muddying their linen now.