Pallonji Mistry, Shapoorji Pallonji Group Chairman passes away at 93

Pallonji Mistry, Indian-born billionaire and Chairman of Indian conglomerate Shapoorji Pallonji Group, passed away in Mumbai on June 27, 2022. He was 93. He died mid-sleep at his residence in south Mumbai residence on the intervening night of June 27 and 28, as per officials.

Mistry's family controls the Shapoorji Pallonji Group, an Indian construction and real estate empire, which was established more than 150 years ago and employs more than 50,000 people in over 50 countries today. Some of the company's landmark projects include the Reserve Bank of India and the blue-and-gold Al Alam palace for the Sultan of Oman.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his condolences on the demise of the business tycoon through a Twitter post, which read, "Saddened by the passing away of Shri Pallonji Mistry. He made monumental contributions to the world of commerce and industry. My condolences to his family, friends and countless well-wishers. May his soul rest in peace."

Saddened by the passing away of Shri Pallonji Mistry. He made monumental contributions to the world of commerce and industry. My condolences to his family, friends and countless well-wishers. May his soul rest in peace.

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) June 28, 2022

Who was Pallonji Mistry?

Pallonji Mistry was an Indian-born Irish billionaire construction tycoon. He was also the chairman of the construction empire Shapoorji Pallonji Group. 

Pallonji Mistry was conferred with India's third-highest civilian award, the Padma Bhushan in 2016 for his contribution as an industrialist. 

Pallonji Mistry's connection to Tata Feud

Pallonji Mistry was the largest individual shareholder in the Tata Group with over 18 per cent stake holding in Tata Sons. His father Shapoorji Pallonji had bought the Tata Sons shares in 1930.The Mistry family derived most of the family wealth from being the largest minority shareholder of Tata Sons. 

However, India’s biggest corporate feud was sparked when Pallonji Mistry's son Cyrus Mistry was ousted as Tata Sons Chairman in 2016, triggering a public courtroom battle between two of India's top conglomerates. 

The Supreme Court ruled in 2021 that Cyrus’s ouster was legal and upheld Tata Sons’s rules on minority shareholder rights, which made it difficult to sell shares without board approval. That meant the stake of the Mistry Group, which was worth almost $30 billion in early 2022, was basically illiquid.