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For decades, the image of the Hinduja brothers was one of impenetrable unity. Srichand and Gopichand, known universally as SP and GP, were famously spotted on morning walks through St James’s Park, feeding squirrels and discussing the intricacies of a global conglomerate that spanned banking, oil, automotive, and media sectors. To the outside observer, and indeed to the Sunday Times Rich List which frequently placed them at the very top with a fortune exceeding £35 billion, they were a singular financial force. GP famously remarked that he and his three brothers were "one soul," operating under a strict code where all assets were held in common and individual ownership was a foreign concept.
However, beneath this veneer of brotherly devotion lay a simmering resentment that eventually erupted into a legal battle worthy of a television drama. The fracture that splintered the family can be traced back to a fundamental clash between ancient family traditions and modern legal realities, specifically hinging on a disputed document signed in July 2014.
The origin of the $14 billion feud lies in a letter signed by the four brothers—SP, GP, Prakash, and Ashok. The document plainly stated that assets held in any single brother’s name belonged to all four. It was intended to codify their father Parmanand’s founding philosophy that "everything belongs to everyone." Yet, this attempt to cement their unity ultimately became the instrument of their division. The philosophy crumbled in 2015 when SP, the eldest brother and family patriarch, sought to take sole control of the Switzerland-based Hinduja Bank, an institution chaired by his daughter, Shanu.
The dispute quickly spiraled from a family disagreement into a high-stakes litigation in London’s High Court. By this time, SP was suffering from Lewy body dementia, leaving his daughters, Vinoo and Shanu, to litigate on his behalf. The conflict exposed a deep-seated ideological rift regarding the role of women in the dynasty. The brothers adhered to traditional patriarchal values, allegedly believing that the business empire should be managed exclusively by the male line. Vinoo argued in court that following the 2014 letter, her father’s brothers had attempted to sideline her side of the family, cutting them off from funding and decision-making processes.
The courtroom revelations painted a starkly different picture than the harmonious public image the Hindujas had cultivated. The judge in the case lamented that despite their extraordinary financial capacity, the family had failed to provide SP with peace and dignity in his final years, at one point noting that funding for his medical care had been restricted to the point where a transfer to a state-funded hospital was considered. While GP vehemently denied these claims, asserting that millions had been made available, the reputational damage was done. The legal warring only concluded with a fragile truce in 2022 as SP’s health declined rapidly, leading to his death in 2023 at the age of 87.
The family tragedy is compounded by a history of sorrow, most notably the 1992 death of SP’s only son, Dharam. In a shocking turn of events, Dharam had entered a suicide pact with his wife in Mauritius after fleeing the family's disapproval of his marriage to a Roman Catholic woman. While his wife survived, the loss left a void in the direct male line for the eldest brother, perhaps fueling the intensity of the later battle for control between the uncles and their nieces.
Even as the London legal battle cooled, the family faced turmoil on other fronts. In a separate and damaging legal proceeding in 2024, a Swiss court handed down prison sentences to the third brother, Prakash, along with his wife and son, for exploiting domestic staff at their Geneva villa. The court heard harrowing details of confiscated passports and pittance wages, further tarnishing the legacy of a family that had once prided itself on benevolent paternalism.
Amidst this internecine warfare, the family continued to project power through real estate. Their crowning achievement, the Owo hotel in Whitehall, stands as a complex symbol of their reign. Purchased for £357 million and renovated at a staggering cost of over £1.4 billion, the former Old War Office was transformed into a playground for the ultra-wealthy, featuring a suite where Winston Churchill once worked. Yet, even this monument to their success faces challenges, with its luxury residences struggling to sell in a cooling market, and the hotel initially operating at a significant loss.
With the death of GP Hinduja last month at the age of 85, the "era of SP and GP" has officially closed. The control of the conglomerate now shifts to the remaining brothers, Ashok and Prakash, alongside GP’s sons, Sanjay and Dheeraj. At GP’s funeral, his niece Shanu spoke of healing, asserting that differences are not divisions. However, with unresolved grievances lingering and a younger generation purportedly unsatisfied with their share of the pie, the truce feels tenuous. The "one soul" that once bound the Hinduja empire has been irrevocably altered, replaced by a complex web of individual interests and legal precedents that may define the family's future just as much as their billions
