Enforcement Directorate Assists in Recovery of ₹311.67 Crore in Dues of Kingfisher Airlines Employees

Heading:

The Enforcement Directorate (ED), Mumbai Zonal Office, has facilitated the recovery of long-pending dues amounting to ₹311.67 crore payable to the employees of M/s Kingfisher Airlines Limited (KAL). This action reinforces ED’s commitment under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA) towards victim-centric restoration of proceeds of crime.

The recovery has been enabled pursuant to an order dated 12.12.2025 passed by the Recovery Officer, Debt Recovery Tribunal-I (DRT), Chennai, directing the release of funds realised from the sale of attached shares. These shares had earlier been restituted by ED to the State Bank of India (SBI) under the provisions of PMLA. The released amount is to be transferred to the Official Liquidator for distribution among the former employees of Kingfisher Airlines.

Background of the Case:

ED initiated investigation on the basis of multiple FIRs registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against Kingfisher Airlines Limited, Vijay Mallya, and associated entities for bank fraud and criminal conspiracy, which are scheduled offences under PMLA. The investigation revealed large-scale diversion and siphoning of loan funds, leading to attachment of movable and immovable assets of KAL, Vijay Mallya, United Breweries Holdings Limited, and other related entities.

Vijay Mallya was declared a Fugitive Economic Offender on 05.01.2019 under the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, 2018. It is relevant to note that ED has restituted assets worth ₹14,132 crore to SBI under Section 8(8) of PMLA, creating a restitution pool that enabled the present recovery.

Coordination for Workers’ Dues:

In discharge of its statutory mandate, ED actively coordinated with all stakeholders to ensure settlement of the long-pending dues of the workers. ED engaged with senior officials of SBI and facilitated the use of restituted assets for payment of employee claims. Pursuant thereto, SBI filed Interim Application No. 01/2025 before the DRT, offering the restituted assets for settlement of workers’ dues and expressly agreeing to accord priority to such dues over claims of secured creditors.

Outcome:

Consequently, the DRT directed the Official Liquidator to disburse ₹311.67 crore towards payment of outstanding worker dues to the former employees of Kingfisher Airlines.

This restitution underscores ED’s sustained commitment to depriving economic offenders of the proceeds of crime and restoring such proceeds to their rightful beneficiaries, including affected employees.