Modi speaks to UK PM on Vijay Mallya's extradition: sources

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi who is on a visit to UK, raised the subject of fugitive tycoon Vijay Mallya's extradition in his talks with his British counterpart Theresa May, NDTV reported government sources saying.

Though there was no official statement on this, a spokesperson of 10 Downing Street said Theresa May and Prime Minister Narendra Modi had discussed cooperation between the two countries on legal matters.

Liquor baron Vijay Mallya is wanted in India in a money laundering case and an alleged bank fraud case.

Mallya skipped the country after defaulting on loans that run into hundreds of crores.

He is accused of fraudulently palming off losses from his now defunct Kingfisher Airlines onto banks by taking out loans worth Rs 9,000 crore, which he had no intention of repaying.

The Modi government has been repeatedly targeted by opposition parties over Vijay Mallya's exit and the luxurious life that he is leading in Britain, where he lives in a sprawling mansion near London and attends races.

He was arrested twice in 2017 in London and released on bail.

The government is now wading through a long process of extraditing him. A final judgement is expected to come within weeks.

The Crown Prosecution service in London is representing the Indian government in court.

India has submitted a 2,000-page dossier in court as part of evidence against Vijay Mallya.

One of the arguments that the 61-year-old businessman has put forward in the UK hearings is the poor condition of prisons in India.