Co-owner Vijay Mallya has resigned as a director of the Force India Formula One team but will continue to serve as principal and shareholder. (Reuters)

Co-owner Vijay Mallya has resigned as a director of the Force India Formula One team but will continue to serve as principal and shareholder. “I continue as team principal,” the beleaguered businessman told the Motorsport.com website on Thursday. “There was no compulsion anywhere to resign, it’s just that I decided that my son should replace me. “I have my own legal issues to take care of. So it’s better that the company remains unaffected.” Mallya, who lives in Britain, is fighting a court battle to prevent his extradition to India to face charges of fraud.

The 62-year-old Indian, who denies wrongdoing, stands accused of fraudulently palming off losses from his now defunct Kingfisher Airlines on to banks by taking out loans he had no intention of repaying. A “termination of a director appointment” notice was listed under the team’s filings on the Companies House website. The date of termination was May 25. There was no mention of his son, Siddharth, being appointed in his place.