Cracks in The Hinduja Undivided Family

Hinduja family seems headed for a split. Why a family constitution may have helped

- NEVIN JOHN

Over the past 50 years, the Hindujas have epitomised bonding, as they dined, prayed and holidayed together, even as the family expanded from the second generation to the third and fourth generations. The business empire also grew as they moved headquarters from Shikarpur in Sindh province of today’s Pakistan to Tehran and then London, though most of their businesses are headquartered in India.

In fact, it was the unity of the second generation – the four sons of patriarch Parmanand Deepchand Hinduja – Srichand (84), Gopichand (80), Prakash (75) and Ashok (70)– that helped them sail through political controversies, including the one in London in which a British cabinet minister lost his job, and the Bofors scandal, which shook Indian politics in the late 80s.

That was then. Today, the Hinduja Group is on the verge of a vertical split as the three younger brothers rally against the family of Srichand P. Hinduja, the chairman of the group who was instrumental in creating its financial institutions, including IndusInd Bank and Hinduja Bank (Switzerland). The five group companies which are listed together generated revenues of ₹65,700 crore and profits of ₹5,500 crores in 2018/19.