Former Tata Sons chairman Cyrus Mistry killed in accident

Palghar, Sept 5: Cyrus Mistry, who succeeded Ratan Tata as chairman of Tata Sons but was later ousted in India's most high-profile boardroom coup, was killed in a car accident in Maharashtra's Palghar on Sunday, said police. He was 54.

 

 

 

Mistry was traveling from Gujarat's Udwada to Mumbai in a Mercedes car, it added. Pictures from the accident site showed the mangled remains of the silver Mercedes. The accident happened when the car hit the road divider in the Charoti area of Palghar, 135 km from Mumbai.

 

 

 

"The accident occurred around 3.15 pm when Mistry was traveling to Mumbai. The accident took place on a bridge over the Surya river. It seems an accident," said Palghar district superintendent of police, Balasaheb Patil. Along with Mistry, Jehangir Pandole, Anahita Pandole, and Darius Pandole were present in the car. Jehangir Pandole, brother of Darius Pandole, is the other person who died in the accident. Darius Pandole was an independent director in Tata group firms and had opposed the removal of Mistry as the company's chairman. He also left the Tata group with Mistry. Darius is Anahita's husband. Anahita Pandole, a well-known gynecologist in Mumbai, was driving the car. Anahita Pandole and Darius Pandole were shifted to a private hospital in Vapi in Gujarat after the accident. "They are likely to be shifted to a Mumbai hospital on Monday morning," the police official said Sunday night. The car was speeding and tried to overtake another vehicle from the wrong side (from the left), a police officer told news agency PTI. Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said he had asked the state police to conduct a detailed investigation into the accident. "Spoke to DGP and instructed for detailed investigations," tweeted Fadnavis, who is also the state home minister. This is the latest blow for the Mistry family whose patriarch, Pallonji Mistry - Cyrus's father - died in June at the age of 93. Their empire built luxury hotels, stadiums, palaces, and factories across Asia, but was most recently known for a corporate feud with the Tata Group.

 

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi led the nation in mourning the loss of the business tycoon, calling it a "big loss" to the world of commerce and industry. "The untimely demise of Shri Cyrus Mistry is shocking. He was a promising business leader who believed in India's economic prowess. His passing away is a big loss to the world of commerce and industry. Condolences to his family and friends. May his soul rest in peace," PM Modi tweeted.