Sandesara brothers, promoters of Sterling Global Resources Pvt Ltd and Sterling SEZ and Infrastructure Ltd, have fully settled their dues with two public sector banks
NEW DELHI — Fugitive offenders like Vijay Mallya of Kingfisher Airlines, Nirav Modi of Firestar International and Nitin Sandesara of Sterling Biotech and Sterling SEZ, and others have defrauded Indian banks of massive sum of over Rs 58,000 crore, the government revealed on the first day of Parliament’s Winter Session on Monday.
Vijay Mallya and Nirav Modi are among the 15 persons declared as Fugitive Economic Offenders (FEOs) as on October 31 for causing a loss of over Rs 58,000 crore to various banks.
The document submitted by the Narendra Modi-led BJP government revealed that the amount includes principal and accumulated interest.
Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary said that the 15 persons, declared FEOs by the Special Court under the provisions of the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, 2018 (FEOA), caused a financial loss of Rs 26,645 crore to banks, as principal amount till October 31, 2025. The loss caused by the 15 FEOs in the form of interest accrued from the date of NPA till October 31 stands at Rs 31,437 crore, the MoS said.
Chaudhary said that till October 31, the total amount recovered from the 15 persons stood at Rs 19,187 crore.
The documents revealed that Vijay Mallya owes Rs 22,065 crore to several banks, out of which the banks have recovered over Rs 14,000 crore through seizure and auction of properties.
Out of the 15 FEOs, two have negotiated a settlement with the banks they had borrowed money from. The Sandesara brothers, promoters of Sterling Global Resources Pvt Ltd and Sterling SEZ and Infrastructure Ltd, have fully settled their dues with two public sector banks.
The brothers have paid back a total of Rs 496 crore to Indian Overseas Bank and Punjab National Bank, the government confirmed. Both men are still classified as fugitive economic offenders and face ongoing cases.
The efforts to secure assets, pursue extraditions, and maximise recoveries continue under the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act (FEOA) and Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The banks defrauded by these FEOs include State Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, Bank of Baroda, Punjab and Sind Bank (Under Consortium), UCO Bank, Union Bank of India, Bank of India, Bank of Maharashtra, Canara Bank, Central Bank of India, Indian Bank and Indian Overseas Bank.
