Anil Ambani,
Reliance Group chairman, told a UK court that suggestions of his lavish tastes
are speculative because his lifestyle is ‘very disciplined’ as he gave evidence
in a dispute involving a loan agreement with three Chinese banks, news agency
PTI reported.

“My needs are not
vast and my lifestyle is very disciplined,” Ambani told the London court.

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When asked about his
fleet of luxury cars and other references to his lavish lifestyle as the
counsel for the banks cross-examined him, the Reliance Communications chief
dismissed them as “speculative” media stories.

“Mr Anil Ambani
has always been a simple man of simple tastes, contrary to exaggerated
perceptions of his flamboyance and lavish lifestyle,” said a spokesperson
for Anil Ambani.

“He is devoted to
his family and company, an avid marathon runner, and deeply spiritual. He is
also a lifelong vegetarian, teetotaller and non-smoker who would much rather
watch a movie at home with his kids than go out on the town. Reports that
suggest otherwise are completely misleading,” the spokesperson continued.

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Ambani, 61, appeared
via videolink from Mumbai before the High Court on Friday for compulsory
cross-examination in aid of an asset disclosure order obtained by the
Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Ltd Mumbai Branch, China Development
Bank and Exim Bank of China.

The dispute revolves
around an alleged breach of a personal guarantee on a company debt refinancing
loan of around USD 925 million dating back to February 2012. Ambani denies
providing authority for any such guarantee, resulting in the High Court action in
the UK – the jurisdiction agreed upon as part of the terms of the loan
agreement.

In May, the Commercial
Division of the High Court of England and Wales in London had ruled that the
personal guarantee was binding on Ambani and directed him to pay early USD 717
million to the three Chinese banks.

“The banks will
use the information from the cross-examination to pursue all available legal
avenues to protect their rights and recover the outstanding loans owed to
them,” the banks said in a statement this week.

At a hearing in the
case earlier in the year, a UK judge had ruled that he did not accept Ambani’s
defence that his net worth was nearly zero or that his family would not step in
to assist him when “push came to shove”.