An Indian court filed an arrest warrant Friday for Vijay Mallya, a Formula One tycoon nicknamed the "King of Good Times", over allegations that cheques written by his troubled airline had bounced. The non-bailable warrant was issued in the local sessions court in the southern city of Hyderabad against Mallya and four other executives in a dramatic escalation of the crisis facing his cash-strapped Kingfisher Airlines.
Mallya's whereabouts were not immediately known although a member of his entourage said he was out of the country. The warrant was issued as the airline announced it was extending its shutdown until October 20 due to a dispute with striking staff over wages that have not been paid for seven months. Kingfisher has been grounded for nearly two weeks.
"At this time, the airline is hopeful of resuming operations starting October 21st," Kingfisher said in a statement late Friday. The arrest warrant for Mallya was triggered after a complaint was lodged before the court by GHIAL, the operator of Hyderabad airport, over non-payment of bills. "The cases were listed today for the airline to appear in the court," said a GHIAL spokesman. "Since they failed to appear before the magistrate, the court has ordered issuance of NBW (non-bailable warrants) against Kingfisher Airlines (KFA), Vijay Mallya and four other KFA officials," the spokesman added in a statement.
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