A State Bank of India-led consortium of lenders has informed the Bombay High Court that ₹8,752 crore remained recoverable from fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya as of August 31, despite having recovered ₹10,270 crore so far. According to latest reports from The Economic Times, this disclosure contradicts Mallya's argument that banks have already recovered amounts exceeding their dues. The debt recovery officer has provisionally recovered ₹10,270 crore, backed by a bond undertaking from the consortium, with an additional ₹544.58 crore recovered before filing the suit in the Debt Recovery Tribunal. As per The Economic Times, the consortium's position is that substantial sums are still legally recoverable despite the assets and proceeds realised so far. The latest figures show that ₹8,135.63 crore was outstanding as of January 2026, which increased to ₹8,751.86 crore by August 31 following additional accruals and legal fees.
Mallya, the founder of defunct Kingfisher Airlines and former chairman of the United Breweries Group, had moved the high court in 2020 seeking dismissal of criminal cases against him, arguing that his dispute with the banks had been settled. As reported by The Economic Times, the Enforcement Directorate has filed its response, with the matter scheduled to be heard next on October 13. The consortium has opposed Mallya's plea, arguing that the criminal application challenging an earlier order dated December 31, 2019, is misconceived and should be dismissed. According to The Economic Times, the recovery figure cannot be viewed in isolation from the amount that continues to remain due under the recovery certificate, including subsequent accruals. The latest affidavit was filed before the Bombay High Court in response to Mallya's plea seeking to quash the money laundering case against him.
The Enforcement Directorate has maintained that even recovered funds don't dismiss ongoing criminal cases. According to The Economic Times, the ED stated that assets worth about ₹14,132 crore have been restored to SBI, but such recoveries settle civil claims and don't extinguish pending criminal proceedings under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The ED emphasized that restoration of assets under Section 8(8) of the PMLA is a statutory mechanism for restitution and doesn't determine the existence of scheduled offences or money laundering charges. As reported by The Economic Times, the ED said in its reply that the restoration of assets under Section 8(8) of the PMLA is a statutory mechanism for restitution to a claimant having a legitimate interest in the property and does not, by itself, determine the existence of the scheduled offence or the offence of money laundering.
The dispute involving Mallya, the SBI-led consortium and investigating agencies has run on two parallel tracks—recovery of bank dues and criminal prosecution. As reported by The Economic Times, banks have pursued recovery through the DRT and sale or restitution of attached assets, while the ED and CBI have pursued cases alleging bank fraud, criminal conspiracy and money laundering linked to loans extended to Kingfisher Airlines. The latest affidavit reveals that several shares attached in the case continue to be intact and haven't been sold, according to the banks' affidavit. Mallya, declared a fugitive economic offender in 2019, has argued that lenders' recoveries exceed the original decreed debt and thus has sought closure of proceedings against him. The judicial proceedings continue simultaneously on two distinct fronts: civil recovery of bank liabilities and criminal prosecution by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
