A day before the Rajya Sabha’s ethics committee was to recommend his expulsion, businessman and independent MP Vijay Mallya on Monday resigned from the Upper House.
A day before the Rajya Sabha’s ethics committee was to recommend his expulsion, businessman and independent MP Vijay Mallya on Monday resigned from the Upper House.
In his resignation letter to Rajya Sabha chairman Hamid Ansari, the business tycoon facing a case of loan default of over '9,400 crore, said he does not want his “name and reputation to be further dragged in the mud”.
“And since recent events suggest that I will not get a fair trial or justice, I am hereby resigning as a member of the Rajya Sabha with immediate effect,” Mr Mallya said.
Referring to ethics committee chairman Dr Karan Singh’s letter to him, Mr Mallya said he had replied to Dr Singh. This was Mr Mallya’s second term in the Rajya Sabha and it would have otherwise come to an end on July 1. The ethics panel had unanimously decided in its April 25 meeting that Mr Mallya should no longer remain a member of the House and was planning to recommend his expulsion in its next meeting on May 3.
At the same time, the panel had decided to give Mr Mallya one week time to explain his conduct.
Mr Mallya also thanked the Rajya Sabha chairman and his “colleagues in the House for all the cooperation” that he received during his two terms.
Appending a copy of his reply to Dr Singh, Mr Mallya, who faxed his resignation to the Rajya Sabha chairman, asserted, “The allegations against me are blatantly false and baseless.”
“I am shocked that the department of financial services, ministry of finance, government of India has provided factually wrong information to a Parliament Committee.... Nevertheless, since I do not want my name and reputation to be further dragged in the mud and since recent events suggest that I will not get a fair trial or justice, I am hereby resigning as a member of the Rajya Sabha with immediate effect,” Mr Mallya said.
