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Mallya extradition hearing confirmed for 8 days from December 4

Judge says that if further evidence keeps coming in it could put the trial date at “risk” before freeing him on the same bail conditions.

A defiant Vijay Mallya appeared on Monday at the Westminster Magistrates’ Court in London for his pre-trial hearing where the liquor baron’s extraditionhearing was confirmed for eight days starting December 4.

The 61-year-old businessman, out on bail on an extradition warrant executed by Scotland Yard earlier this year, was released by the judge on the same bail conditions and asked to appear at court on December 4.

The trial will last until December 14, with December 8 marked as a non-sitting day.

Maintains no guilt

Speaking to reporters as he left the case management hearing, Mr. Mallya said he had repeatedly stressed that he had done nothing wrong and will let the evidence speak in court.

“It will all become clear in court,” he said.

The United Kingdom’s Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), which is arguing the case against Mr. Mallya on behalf of the Indian authorities, had presented additional “supplemental” charges of money-laundering to the previous charges of fraud at the last hearing in the case on October 3.

The previous fraud charges relate to Mr. Mallya’s now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines owing more than Rs 9,000 crore to various Indian banks.

The UB Group chief has been on self-imposed exile in the UK since he left Indiaon March 2, 2016.

The CPS said it was technically re-filing its extradition request in court, after the new charges “superseded” the previous ongoing case.

Will it click now?

The judge, Chief Magistrate Emma Louise Arbuthnot, agreed to formally re-open a fresh case while keeping to the same time-table as set before.

However, she had concurred with Mr. Mallya’s defence team that if further evidence keeps coming in it could put the December 4 trial date at “risk” before releasing him on the same bail conditions as before.

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