Poor Pilibhit farmer is Mallya guarantor!
Shahira Naim
Tribune News Service
Lucknow, May 21
“Mallya nu na kade wekhya, na Mumbai nu (I have never either seen Mallya or Mumbai)” was the reaction of a shocked 45-year-old farmer, Manmohan Singh, from Bilsanda town in Pilibhit whose two bank accounts with Bank of Baroda had remained sealed since December 2015 for being the guarantor of absconding defaulter and liquor baron Vijay Mallya.
It was only after the media reported the harassment of the farmer that his accounts, jointly having the princely amount of Rs 5,217, was finally freed last evening. Manmohan Singh’s son Harvinder said his whole family had never either seen Mallya or Mumbai.
He said in December his father had received a letter from the Nand branch of Bank of Baroda in Bilsanda town of Pilibhit, claiming that his accounts had been sealed and he would get no further loan as he was the guarantor and Director of Mallya’s company. Mammohan Singh, owner of an eight-acre farm in Bilsanda, first thought that the letter referred to Rs 4 lakh farm loan he had taken from the bank.
Bank of Baroda Nand branch manager Mange Ram said the brach had received a letter from the Mumbai office to seize these two accounts of Manmohan Singh for recovery of the loan amount as his name was on the guarantors list of Vijay Mallya. It was after the bank officials visited the house of Manmohan Singh and sent a report to the Mumbai office of his humble background and the mounting pressure of the media that they received a letter permitting to release the accounts.
