Saturday, December 05, 2015

Mallya's jet set to be sold sans its Picassos

Mumbai: The service tax department is set to auction a personal jet of Vijay Mallya that officials had impounded three years ago after his now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines failed to remit $28 million in service tax collected from passengers.

The Airbus jet 319, labelled VT-VJM after the liquor baron's initials, was once described as one of the world's most luxurious private aircraft.

Mallya bought it for $25 million and spent another $2 million on fixtures and improvements for the bar, dining room, bedroom, washroom and a business section. He used to keep four Picasso paintings and other expensive artefacts, including a picture of Lord Balaji that had 15 solitaries embedded in the forehead tikka.

A source in the service tax department said that the artefacts were later removed from the aircraft and were thought to be in Mallya's custody.

The aircraft, manufactured in 2006, is currently parked at Mumbai airport. The auction, ordered by the Bombay High Court, is expected to take place within a few weeks.

DGCA chief M Sathiyavathy confirmed the auction plan.
05/12/15 Aditya Anand/Mumbai Mirror
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