Swraj Paul, the capitalist rebel in a socialist India

Swraj Paul, who passed away in London on Thursday evening at the age of 94, was one of the most consequential entrepreneurs that the India of the past prevented from flourishing.

- Sundeep Khanna

Born into a Punjabi Hindu family in Jullunder (now Jalandhar) on 18 February 1931, Paul's journey from foundry owner's son to London steel magnate began with a tragedy that would define his character.

His father Payare Lal ran a small foundry that produced steel buckets and farm machinery as part of the Apeejay Group, managed by Paul's older brothers Satya and Jit. After obtaining his Master's degree in mechanical engineering from MIT, Swraj returned to join the family business, but his life changed irrevocably in 1966 when his four-year-old daughter Ambika was diagnosed with leukemia.

Then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi personally removed bureaucratic hurdles to allow him the foreign currency he needed for treatment abroad — a rarity in socialist India. Despite Paul's efforts, Ambika passed away. Shattered, he relocated permanently to London, taking over the operations of Apeejay Overseas. Following a family partition, he renamed his business Caparo, establishing himself as an independent force while maintaining his Indian connections.

Tragedy would revisit him years later. In November 2015 his son Angad Paul, CEO of Caparo, died after falling from his Marylebone penthouse, dealing Paul another devastating blow in his golden years.