A UK High Court has rejected a written plea of embattled liquor baron Vijay Mallya against his extradition order.

Mallya is facing charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to nearly Rs 9,000 crores in India.

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In February, UK’s Home Office said the British government had signed an order to extradite Mallya.

Since Mallya’s application has been rejected, he will now have the option to submit a renewal form.

The renewal process will lead to a 30-minute oral hearing during which Mallya’s legal team and the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) – on behalf of the Indian government – will renew their respective claims for and against an appeal for a judge to determine if it can proceed to a full hearing.

The process, to be heard in the Royal Courts of Justice in London, could take months as the listing of a hearing will depend on the availability of judges and other factors.

Following the outcome at the High Court level, both sides could apply for the right to appeal to the Supreme Court, which would involve at least another six weeks. However, that process is more complex as the UK High Court must certify that the appeal involves a point of law of general public importance, and either the High Court or the Supreme Court gives leave for the appeal to be made.

Vijay Mallya has been based in the UK since March 2016 and remains on bail on an extradition warrant executed by Scotland Yard in April 2017.

In her verdict at the end of a year-long extradition trial in December last year, Judge Emma Arbuthnot had ruled that the flashy billionaire had a case to answer in the Indian courts.

The court had also dismissed any bars to extradition on the grounds of the prison conditions under which the businessman would be held, as the judge accepted the Indian government’s assurances that he would receive all necessary medical care at Barrack 12 in Mumbai’s Arthur Road Jail.

(With PTI inputs)