Sahara Group chief Subrata Roy passes away at 75

Mumbai: Subrata Roy, the founder of Sahara India Group, passed away at a private hospital here on Tuesday night after battling multiple health issues. He was 75.

He was admitted to Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital & Medical Research Institute (KDAH) on Sunday and succumbed to cardiorespiratory arrest due to complications stemming from metastatic malignancy, hypertension, and diabetes.

Subrata Roy Sahara, born on June 10, 1948, in Bihar's Araria, kickstarted his entrepreneurial journey in Gorakhpur, pursuing mechanical engineering at the Government Technical Institute. Taking charge of Sahara Finance in 1976, he transformed it into Sahara India Pariwar by 1978, becoming a major Indian conglomerate.

Under his leadership, the empire expanded into finance, real estate, media, and hospitality, overseeing diverse ventures like Aamby Valley City, Sahara Movie Studios, and Air Sahara. The conglomerate's projects spanned housing developments to organising large-scale events.

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Subrata Roy garnered accolades such as the Businessmen of the Year Award and the Best Industrialist Award in 2002. He was honoured with the Vishisht Rashtriya Udaan Samman in 2010 by a leading publication, the Vocational Award for Excellence in 2010 by Rotary International, the Karmaveer Samman in 1995, Udyam Shree in 1994, Baba-E-Rozgar Award in 1992, and the National Citizen Award in 2001.

In 2012, he was recognised as one of India's 10 most influential businessmen by India Today magazine.

In 2014, the Supreme Court of India ordered Roy's detention for failing to appear in connection with a dispute with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). This sparked a prolonged legal battle, leading to his time in Tihar Jail, from which he was later released on parole.

Roy is survived by his wife, son, and brother.

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