Founder of Sahara Group, Subrata Roy dies at 75 after prolonged illness

Subrata Roy, the founder of Sahara India Pariwar, passed away on Wednesday, November 14. He was 75 at the time of his death.

In a statement, the Sahara group said, "Saharasri ji an inspirational leader and visionary, passed away on 141h November 2023 at 10.30 pm due to cardiorespiratory arrest following an extended battle with complications arising from metastatic malignancy, hypertension, and diabetes. He was admitted to Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital & Medical Research Institute (KDAH) on 12th November 2023, following a decline in health."

Roy Born on June 10, 1948, in Araria, Bihar, Roy was a prominent figure in the Indian business landscape, having established a vast empire that spanned various sectors including finance, real estate, media, and hospitality. Roy's journey began with his education in mechanical engineering from the Government Technical Institute in Gorakhpur.

He ventured into business in Gorakhpur before taking over Sahara Finance, a struggling chit fund company, in 1976. By 1978, he had transformed it into Sahara India Pariwar, which would grow to become one of India's largest conglomerates.

Under the stewardship of Roy, Sahara India Pariwar branched out into a multitude of sectors. The company launched the Hindi newspaper, Rashtriya Sahara in 1992, undertook the ambitious Aamby Valley City project near Pune in the late 1990s, and made its foray into the television industry with Sahara TV, which was subsequently rebranded as Sahara One. In the 2000s, the group acquired globally recognised properties such as the Grosvenor House Hotel in London and the Plaza Hotel in New York City.

Time magazine once recognised Sahara India Pariwar as the second-largest employer in India, trailing only Indian Railways, with a workforce comprising approximately 1.2 million individuals. The group stated it had over 9 crore investors, accounting for a substantial number of Indian households. However, Roy's business journey was not devoid of legal hurdles.

In 2014, the Supreme Court of India ordered his arrest for not appearing in court in a case related to a dispute with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). This marked the beginning of a prolonged legal struggle, with Roy serving time in Tihar Jail before being granted parole. The case centred around SEBI's order for Sahara to reimburse billions to investors, leading the Supreme Court to establish a 'Sahara-Sebi refund account'.

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