Britain’s richest man dies aged 85: Tycoon Gopichand Hinduja, who topped Rich List after creating £35bn business empire with his brother passes away after long illness

Gopichand Hinduja, whose family business made him the richest man in England, has died at the age of 85.

The businessman was the head of the Hinduja family owned by him. Indian conglomerate Hinduja Group gave them an estimated fortune. £37.2 billion in 2024 – the largest amount the Sunday Times Rich List has ever recorded.

Gopichand, known as ‘GP’, passed away yesterday after a long illness.

His relatives said in their statement: ‘He was a humble and cheerful person, a friend of everyone he met. He will also be remembered for the tremendous work that the Hinduja Group has done over the last 70 years to achieve the global success it has today.

‘It will leave a deep hole in our family’s hearts. He will also be remembered for his amazing work.’

Gopichand was co-chairman of the family business along with his elder brother Srihand, who died in 2023 at the age of 87.

The duo moved to London in the 1970s, where they grew the Hinduja Group, which began life in 1914 as a modest operation dealing in carpets, tea and spices, into a global giant with businesses ranging from banking and healthcare to real estate, oil and entertainment.

Mr Hinduja with King Charles, while Prince of Wales, at a charity event in London in 2019

The couple’s younger brother Prakash moved to Geneva to run the family’s fund management operation, while Ashok remained in Mumbai to look after the Indian interests of the Hinduja Group, which employs about 200,000 people worldwide.

It is not known who will now take over the leadership of the group, but youngest sibling Ashok has operations across India, including truck maker Ashok Leyland.

Like his brothers, Gopichand was also a complete vegetarian. He married his wife Sunita Gurnani in 1963 and had two sons, Sanjay and Dheeraj, and a daughter, Rita.

Unusually, Gopichand and his family lived with his brother Srichand’s family and the couples shared the upbringing of their children.

Home was a luxury apartment in London’s Carlton House Terrace, close to the Hinduja Group’s headquarters in Haymarket.

While the two brothers were known for avoiding publicity, Gopichand was seen as the more outgoing of the duo, regularly asserting himself as the family’s spokesperson.

But the sense of family harmony was shattered in 2015 when Srihand claimed to be the sole owner of Switzerland-based Hinduja Bank.

In this process, he requested the court to annul a previous case. It was agreed that assets held in one brother’s name belonged to all four.

The move set off a storm of litigation worth billions of pounds between them over control of various Hinduja companies.

Like his brothers, Gopichand was also a complete vegetarian. He married his wife Sunita Gurnani in 1963 and had two sons, Sanjay and Dheeraj, and a daughter, Rita.

Gopichand with Princess Anne at the official opening of Raffles at the OWO (Old War Office) in Whitehall in 2023. He described the project as his ‘greatest legacy to London’.

During the protracted legal battle, Srihand developed dementia and a High Court judge expressed concerns that the family was failing to provide him with adequate care.

But in November 2022, six months before his deathA spokesperson for Gopichand said ‘the family matter regarding Srichand’s health and welfare has already been resolved amicably between all parties’.

Gopichand was also embroiled in controversy over the Hinduja Affair in 2001, which led to Lord Peter Mandelson resigning as an MP.

The scandal concerned a letter Gopichand wrote to Mr Mandelson about obtaining a UK passport for his brother Prakash after the group’s charity, the Hinduja Foundation, donated £1 million to the Millennium Dome.

As a result, Mr Mandelson resigned, but was later cleared of wrongdoing following an investigation.

The Hindujas also own significant real estate in London, including St James’s Park and a number of large houses near Winston Churchill’s Old War Office in Whitehall, which was recently renovated to include a hotel.

Gopichand was particularly proud of the project, declaring it his ‘greatest legacy to London’.