Vijay Mallya likely to lose a plush London home over unpaid loans

London : Fugitive liquor baron Vijay Mallya is likely to lose his plush London home after he lost a legal battle over unpaid laons. A British court refused to grant him a stay of enforcement in a long-running dispute with Swiss bank UBS.

The 18/19 Cornwall Terrace luxury apartment overlooking Regent's Park in London, described in court as an "extraordinarily valuable property worth many tens of millions of pounds", is currently being occupied by Mallya's 95-year-old mother Lalitha.

Delivering his judgment virtually for the Chancery Division of the High Court, Deputy Master Matthew Marsh concluded there are no grounds for him to grant further time for the Mallya family to repay a 20.4-million-pound loan to UBS - the claimant in the case.

"The claimant's position was a reasonable one... further time is not likely to make any material difference," Deputy Master Marsh ruled.

"I will also add from my review of the correspondence, I can see no basis whatever for the suggestion that has been made that the claimant has misled the first defendant (Vijay Mallya)... in conclusion, I dismiss the first defendant's application," he said.

The judge also declined permission to appeal against his order or to grant a temporary stay of enforcement, which means UBS can proceed with the possession process to realise its unpaid dues.

"I will refuse permission to appeal and therefore it follows that I will not be granting a stay," said Marsh.