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Indian Fugitive's Luxury Jet Being Dismantled Before Going to Florida

Vijay Mallya’s luxury Airbus A319 private jet, which was once an item of immense attraction, was auctioned to US-based Aviation Management Sales (AMS) for $4.8 million in June last year but due to clearance hurdles the aircraft is being dismantled by India’s state-owned airliner before being handed over to AMS.
Sputnik

New Delhi (Sputnik): India's ‘King of Good Times' Vijay Mallya was declared a fugitive earlier this year after an arrest warrant was issued in his name in the multi-billion dollar bank default case. His private jet is now being dismantled by Air India at its hangar in Mumbai even as the aircraft was auctioned to US-based Aviation Management Sales (AMS) in June last year. AMS could not take custody of the whole aircraft due to administrative reasons, therefore, the company will now only get hold of the aircraft in a totally dismantled form.

READ MORE: India's $1.8 Bln Banking Fraud: Reasons and Ramifications

The aircraft was towed on 13 February from the Lima apron along Maharashtra's Kalina Kurla road to the Air India hangar.

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The luxury jet was a media craze in India when United Breweries (UB) group chairman Mallya used to criss-cross the world to solicit business deals and his other interests including a cricket team in Indian Premier League (IPL), and his pioneering stakes in bringing Formula One racing to India.

His beer brand Kingfisher has the tag line "King of Good Times" and Mallya himself was popularly known by the same name.

He also owned a part share in an Indian lifestyle television channel called NDTV Good Times. 

His possessions, including the luxury jet, was put under the hammer to recover their dues to the tune of $ 114.28 million accumulated on account of non-payment of service tax before his erstwhile Kingfisher Airlines went bankrupt in October 2012. His bank dues in India are huge and under litigation by regulatory bodies and he is living in the UK which is considering his extradition to India.

  
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