In what will
come as a blow to the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) case against the
Beleaguered businessman Vijay Mallya, airline officials from Kingfisher have
conveyed to the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) that the airline’s
books of accounts have gone missing, reports Livemint.
Officials of
the SFIO have been told that the vendor which supplied computers to the company
had carted away the servers and machines that stored the financial accounts of
the airline for non-payment of dues.
Interestingly,
Kingfisher claims that there is no backup available for the lost data, which
contains crucial information about the Rs 9000 crore loan default case.
SFIO, which
works under the ministry of corporate affairs, is looking for information from
former employees of the airline, lenders and audit firms about loans taken out
by Kingfisher Airlines.
“It was
rather strange when the top management representatives of Kingfisher Airlines
informed us that the airline has lost its books and accounts as vendors pulled
out the system which had the accounts. The airline executives claimed that they
never had a backup.”
-SFIO
official
According to
the Companies Act, a company is required to maintain books of accounts for a
minimum period of eight years. This new development would result in more trouble
for Kingfisher Airlines and Mallya, as this would leave the company in
violation of the Companies Act.
SFIO has
written to Mallya’s counsel, asking for his personal presence to settle the
issues, but there has been no reply to the request. Vijay Mallya, who was
earlier declared a proclaimed offender in the case, has been ordered by the
courts to appear before them. Mallya though, in complete defiance, continues to
bide his time in London.
Source: The Quint
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