The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) last week explained, according to a news agency, that the downgrade of the Look Out Circular (LOC) for Vijay Mallya — from his detention to merely being informed about his entry/exit — was an “error of judgment.”
But confidential correspondence accessed by The Indian Express shows that the agency, in writing, argued to the Mumbai Police that its first LOC was, in fact, an error.
It put on record that Mallya’s detention was “not required.”
In its first LOC dated October 16, 2015, the CBI filled out the LOC form checking the box “prevent subject from leaving India.”
The second LOC was dated November 24, 2015, the very night Mallya landed in Delhi. It had a covering letter sent to the Special Branch of the Mumbai Police. The box in this second LOC form that was ticked was: “inform originator of arrival/departure of subject.”
Four months later, Mallya left the country on March 2, 2016, and proceedings to extradite him from the UK are now on. On February 28, Mallya’s lenders SBI got legal advice to move the apex court to stop his exit but they did not act on it.
The crux of the controversy lies in an alert sounded by Immigration authorities activated through the Advanced Passenger Information System (APIS) to the CBI on the morning of November 23, 2015, that Mallya was landing at New Delhi’s international airport from a foreign destination on the night of November 24.
It was on November 24 itself that CBI shot off a lengthy letter to Mumbai Police (for onward instructions to the immigration authorities) along with the fresh LOC categorically stating that, “detention of the subject at this stage is not required by us. In case detention is required in future, it will be communicated separately. The LOC established in respect of the subject may also be amended accordingly.”
The letter, curiously, makes out that the agency was unaware of the system of alerts via the APIS and now that they had been made aware of it, there was no need for Vijay Mallya’s detention.
The letter was signed by then CBI’s SP in Mumbai, Harshita Attaluri, and is marked to Mumbai IPS officer Aswati Dorje.