London: Vijay Mallya has launched a fresh verbal offensive against what he terms “injustice” in his long-running banking and fugitive cases, invoking dark humour to ask whether he would be better off as a “cockroach” even as he insists that over ₹14,000 crore has already been recovered from him and credited to lender banks.
In a series of posts on X, the former Kingfisher Airlines chairman wrote: “With all the injustices I have faced and continue to face, I wonder if I should become a cockroach. Maybe a better life on the cockroach side.”
ED Affidavit And Recovery Claim
Mallya said an Enforcement Directorate (ED) affidavit before the Bombay High Court shows that over ₹14,000 crore was recovered and handed to creditor banks in 2021.
“And may I say again, affidavit filed in Court by the most feared criminal agency the Enforcement Directorate confirms that they handed over Rs 14,000 plus crores to the Banks in 2021. Forget what I say if you don’t trust me. Focus on what the Enforcement Directorate said,” he wrote.
He later quoted a figure of ₹14,131.60 crore as the amount shown as recovered in 2021,as reported by The Statesman.
“Affidavit filed by the ED in the Hon’ble Bombay High Court. Para 7 is the decreed debt and Para 17 shows recovered Rs 14,131.60 crore in 2021 !! 5 years on I am still referred to as a fraud who cheated the Banks,” he said.
Mallya also shared what he called a statement of account of recoveries and asked whether he still deserved to be called a fraudster in media reports.
“To all who believe in fair and proper accounting justice please see the following table. Do I still deserve the way I am berated by the media and referred to as a fraudster at the very outset of a journalist’s script ? Why not start asking when I will get my refund,” Mallya wrote.
Rejects ‘Bhagoda’ Tag; Cites UK Stay
Mallya also rejected the “bhagoda” label, saying he has been a permanent resident of the United Kingdom since 1992 and is now legally barred from leaving the country.
“For all who say I am a bhagoda refusing to come to India, please be aware that I have been a permanent resident of the United Kingdom since 1992 and am currently legally prohibited from leaving this country. All this started with poster boy actions by the Government of India who have been grossly unjust in my case,” he wrote.
He added that bank repayments do not depend on his physical presence in India.
“Thank you all for your mixed replies to my tweets. Love and hate go hand in hand and I respectfully accept that whilst humbly accepting your opinions. But for those who do not understand the difference between permanent residency and citizenship and for those who think that repayments are based on physical presence, please think again,” he said.
In February, the Bombay High Court asked Mallya when he intended to return to India while hearing his challenge to the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act.
In October 2025, Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary told the Lok Sabha that 15 people, including Mallya and Nirav Modi, had been declared Fugitive Economic Offenders under the 2018 law.