Absconding In England, Hard Times Force Vijay Mallya To Kiss Goodbye To Horse Racing
This is a big blow.
Mallya's firm has drastically cut operations in the past couple of years; it is preparing to handover Kunigal farm back to Karnataka government
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Place a note at the turnstiles -- good times have exited Indian horse racing.
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Former liquor baron Vijay Mallya, easily the country's most flamboyant racing horse owner and also Indian racing's biggest benefactor in terms of sponsorships, has decided to call it quits.
Mallya's United Racing & Bloodstock Breeders Limited (URBBL) has drastically cut its Operations in the past couple of years and is preparing to handover its Kunigal Stud Farm back to the Karnataka government.
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Mallya, at any given time, used to have at least a 100 horses in training with different trainers across the country. But the number in November 2016 was down to 85 and stands at only 35 now.
Confirming Mallya's decision to quit horse racing, Managing Director, URBBL, Zeyn Mirza told Mumbai Mirror: "Yes, sadly it's true. You see we are a largely subsidised operation and since the flow of funds has been choked, we have to cut down on the number of horses in our fold." Mirza also said that with Mallya no longer around in India, it made no sense to keep the racing operations going. "Horse-racing was and is Vijay Mallya's passion and his hobby. If he is unable to enjoy the sport in India then there is no point in the company (URBBL) continuing."
Vijay Mallya moved to London in March 2016 leaving behind a debt of over Rs 9000 crore to multiple banks in India. Since then, various courts have issued non-bailable warrants against him for non-appearance and banks have declared him a 'willful defaulter.'
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Based on representations made by the Indian agencies like the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Enforcement Directorate, Mallya was arrested by the Scotland Yard Police in April this year and released on bail. Extradition proceedings are currently on and the Indian agencies would be assisting the British prosecutors with case material to counter his plea before the court.
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Mallya has been associated with horse racing in India for close to three decades and the news of his decision to phase out URBBL operations is sure to cause a flutter. Since Mallya believed in buying thoroughbreds of the best pedigree, his absence will deal a big blow to turf clubs and professionals.
Legendary trainer Rashid Byramji, who trained several Indian classic winners for Mallya, described the development as a big loss for Indian horse racing. "It's sad, very sad. Mallya was a perfect gentleman. He loved racing and always wanted to win."
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Former Royal Western India Turf Club (RWITC) chairman K N Dhunjibhoy called Mallya's departure most unfortunate. "Mallya was an important and generous sponsor of horse racing and his departure will surely be felt by the industry."
Mallya entered horse racing at 21 in 1976 when he bought his first horse named Danish Lad. It was only in 1985 that Mallya entered the sport big time by making a large investment in quality bloodstock bought from the best stud farms in India. Since there were a quite a few fillies who won classic races for Mallya, he retired them to stud farms as broodmares. In 1992, he took over the management of the historical Kunigal Stud Farm, which was given to him on a lease of 30 years.