SP Hinduja, as he was more well known, passed away on Wednesday in London after a protracted bout with illness. A family spokesperson reported that he passed away at the age of 87.
Srichand Parmanand Hinduja became one of the wealthiest persons in Britain as a result of his commercial triumphs, which began in 1964 when he obtained the rights to the global distribution of the blockbuster Bollywood film “Sangam.” Since that time, he has been one of the most successful businesspeople in Britain. However, it was the Bofors scandal that brought him fame, or more accurately, notoriety, in his own country.
SP Hinduja, as he was more well known, passed away on Wednesday in London after a protracted bout with illness. A family spokesperson reported that he passed away at the age of 87.
In exchange for assisting Swedish firearm maker AB Bofors in gaining a contract with the Indian government, he and his two younger brothers, who were also born into a business family in Karachi, British India, were accused of taking unlawful commission payments totaling Rs 64 crore. His two younger brothers were also born into a business family in Karachi. However, in 2005 the Delhi High Court declared Srichand, Gopichand, and Prakash Hinduja not guilty of the charges against them.
SP In January of this year, Hinduja, the eldest of his four brothers and the head of the Hinduja Group, suffered the loss of his wife, Madhu. It was the year 82. Shanu and Vinoo, his daughters, are the ones who will carry on his legacy.
Before migrating to Iran in 1919, Parmanand Deepchand Hinduja began his business career as a merchant in the Sindh region of India (now a part of Pakistan). This was the beginning of the Hinduja empire. In 1964, SP Hinduja was able to make his first million dollars by distributing the film “Sangam,” which starred Raj Kapoor, throughout the markets of the Middle East.
And when Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had a dispute with the Shah of Iran over the high cost of oil, SP and his brothers took advantage of an offer made by the Iranian monarch to boost Indian exports to the countries of the Persian Gulf by exporting iron ores and other commodities to those countries.
They made the purchase of a share in the Indian truck and bus manufacturer Ashok Leyland in the year 1980. Additionally, in order to enter the market for oils and lubricants, they obtained management of the Gulf Oil International Company by purchasing it from Chevron Corporation.
In 1993, SP Hinduja established IndusInd Bank as his first foray into the banking industry. At the time, Manmohan Singh served as India’s Minister of Finance, therefore he was invited to the bank’s opening ceremony.
The next year, he established S. P. Hinduja Banquee Privee, the first Swiss financial institution that is wholly owned by an Indian company and which is based in Geneva. The bank has locations in Zurich, London, and Dubai, and caters to clients who are both very successful in business and entrepreneurial in nature by providing investment advisory and wealth management services.
All of this transpired at a time when India was being shaken to its core by the Bofors scandal. On March 24, 1986, an agreement worth 1,437 crores of rupees was made for the supply of 400 units of 155 mm Howitzer cannons to the Indian Army.
On April 16, 1987, Swedish Radio made allegations that the business had paid bribes to high-ranking officials in the Indian military and political establishment. A case was opened by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against the Hinduja brothers, suspected middleman Win Channda, and Martin Arbdo, who was the president of AB Bofors at the time.
Due to a lack of proof, the Hinduja brothers were vindicated and freed in the year 2005.
In British courts, the brothers, who have been keeping the extent of their fortune a closely guarded secret, have been going to war over who should have control of the family’s assets.
However, the family is more forthcoming about its political connections, and members of the family have maintained strong relationships with a wide variety of foreign leaders, ranging from the late Shah of Iran through George Bush Senior and Tony Blair.
The Hinduja brothers purchased a mansion in London’s Carlton House Terrace Street in 2006 for the price of 58 million US dollars. The home has 25 bedrooms and is located down the Mall from Buckingham Palace.
“Gopichand, Prakash, Ashok, and the whole Hinduja family with a heavy heart regret to announce the passing away of our family patriarch, and Chairman of the Hinduja Group, Mr. S P Hinduja today,” the Hinduja family spokesman said in a statement. Mr. Hinduja was the person in charge of leading the Hinduja Group.
It called him a “visionary and mentor to the family, bestowing the founding principles and values of our late father, PD Hinduja.” PD Hinduja was the patriarch of the Hinduja family.
According to what was written, “He played a very important role alongside his brothers in building a strong relationship between his host country of the UK and his home country of India.”
“A giant among his contemporaries, S. P. Hinduja fully lived and exemplified the basic ideas and ideals of the Hinduja Group. He was a brave man who took risks and had a generous attitude, and he was genuinely spiritual and committed to helping others.
According to the statement, his death has created a significant hole because the brothers have always functioned as a single entity composed of four bodies.
“His passing has brought unimaginable suffering to his family, and they are inconsolable. Our supplications to the Almighty, may He rest his soul in peace at the lotus feet of His lotus feet.”