The Union government has confirmed that 15 individuals — including high-profile businessmen Vijay Mallya and Nirav Modi — have been formally designated as Fugitive Economic Offenders (FEOs), collectively owing public sector banks about ₹58,000 crore. The disclosure was made in the Lok Sabha on Monday by Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary during the winter session.
Chaudhary said the declarations were made under the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, 2018 (FEOA). Of the 15 offenders, nine are linked to large-scale financial fraud involving public sector banks.
According to the ministry’s data, the total outstanding amount includes a principal of ₹26,645 crore at the time of classification as NPA and ₹31,437 crore in accrued interest up to 31 October 2025. So far, ₹19,187 crore has been recovered.
Mallya is accused of defrauding a consortium of state-owned lenders of over ₹9,000 crore in loans taken for the now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines. Nirav Modi and his uncle Mehul Choksi are central figures in the ₹13,000-crore Punjab National Bank scam, one of the largest bank frauds in India’s history.
Others named on the FEO list include:
Nitin J Sandesara, Chetan J Sandesara and Dipti C Sandesara (Sterling Biotech fraud case)
Sudharshan Venkatraman and Ramanujam Sesharathnam (erstwhile Zylog Systems promoters)
Pushpesh Kumar Baid
Hitesh Kumar Narendrabhai Patel
The government noted that Nitin and Chetan Sandesara have settled portions of their dues with Indian Overseas Bank, Punjab National Bank, Union Bank of India and State Bank of India.
In a significant relief for the Sandesara brothers, the Supreme Court last week ordered that criminal proceedings against them in the Sterling Biotech case may be quashed if they deposit ₹5,100 crore as a full and final settlement. The court observed that once public money is recovered, the continuation of criminal cases would serve “no useful purpose”.
Enacted in 2018, the FEO Act was designed to deter individuals who flee India to avoid criminal prosecution in economic offences involving sums over ₹100 crore. The law empowers authorities to confiscate assets and attach proceeds of crime while the offender remains outside the jurisdiction of Indian courts.
When asked whether the government was drafting a policy to prevent such offenders from travelling abroad in future — through legal bans or watchlists — Chaudhary said no such proposal was currently under consideration.