Baba Kalyani Explained

Baba Kalyani
Birth Date:1949 1, df=y[1]
Birth Place:Pune, Bombay State, Dominion of India
(present day Maharashtra, India)
Nationality:Indian
Founder and Chairman of Kalyani Group
Occupation:Businessman
Awards:Padma Bhushan (2008)
Order of the Polar Star[2]
Bundesverdienstkreuz (2012)[3]
Children:Amit Kalyani[4]

Babasaheb Neelkanth Kalyani is an Indian billionaire businessman who served as the chairman and managing director of Bharat Forge, the flagship company of the Kalyani Group and the world's second-largest forging manufacturer after ThyssenKrupp of Germany.[5] [6]

Early life and education

Babasaheb Kalyani was born in a Lingayat family on 7 January 1949 to Sulochana and Neelakanth Rao Kalyani, a Pune-based technocrat and maker of automotive components. He completed his high school from Rashtriya Military School, Belgaum; and also attended Dr. (Mrs.) Erin N. Nagarvala School (formerly National Model School), Pune. He attended BITS Pilani, from where he earned a BE (Hons.) in Mechanical Engineering in 1970,[7] and later Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he earned an MS degree.

Career

Baba Kalyani joined Bharat Forge, a global manufacturing company, in 1972.[8]

To contribute to a clean and emission-free environment, Kalyani set up Kenersys Limited to manufacture various energy-efficient wind turbines for domestic and international markets. The company also has its own wind turbines in Maharashtra which generate "green energy" for the group's manufacturing operations. He is also engaged in developing solar energy equipment for the non-conventional energy sector. In a joint venture with KPIT Cummins, Bharat Forge is developing a hybrid solution that would contribute in the country being able to meet its vehicular emission targets.

In SKF board of directors member since 2011.

Kalyani received the Indian government's Padma Bhushan award for contributions to Trade and Industry,[9] and was made Commander First Class of the Royal Order of the Polar Star by the Swedish government in recognition of his contribution in furthering trade and business cooperation between Sweden and India. Other awards include Global Economy Prize, 2009 for Business by Kiel Institute, German Businessman of the Year, 2006 by Business India Magazine, Entrepreneur of the Year 2005 for Manufacturing by Ernst & Young, and CEO of the Year 2004 by the Business Standard group.

Government of India constituted a task force under the chairmanship of Baba Kalyani to study policies related to special economic zone (SEZ) on 6 June 2018.[10]

On 19 February 2015, the Kalyani Group announced a joint venture with Rafael Advanced Defense Systems of Israel. This joint venture company will be based in India.[11]

In April 2021, Forbes estimated his net worth to be around US$2.3 billion.[12]

Philanthropy

He is the founder-chairman of Pratham Pune Education Foundation, an NGO that is engaged in providing primary education to children belonging to under-privileged sections of the local community, which was established in 2000.[13]

Lawsuit

Kalyani faced a legal dispute with his sister Sugandha and her husband Jaidev Hiremath over control of the chemical firm Hikal.[14] [15] Sugandha and Jaidev filed a case in the Bombay High Court, accusing Kalyani of attempting to gain full control of Hikal by increasing his group's stake in the company by 5%.[16] [17] The Hiremaths currently hold approximately 35% of Hikal, valued at Rs 3,578 crore, while Kalyani holds 34%. Hiremath claimed that Kalyani selectively ignored a crucial note from 1994, which stated that Hikal shares should be transferred to Sugandha's family.[18]

However, Kalyani dismissed the transfer clause in the 1994 family arrangement as a false claim made by Sugandha. He acknowledged that the October 1993 deal mentioned the transfer of Hikal to the Hiremaths but argued that it was superseded by the 1994 arrangement. Kalyani stated that the Taj meeting was focused on resolving ownership issues at Bharat Forge and Kalyani Forge and refused to acknowledge any Hikal agreement in 1994.[19]

The family feud between Baba Kalyani, Bharat Forge chairman and his sister’s children yet again opens up the discussion on gender parity in succession and inheritance under the Hindu family law. Kalyani, who is among the wealthiest businessmen in the country and finds his name in the Forbes List, recently contested a claim made by his nephew Sameer Hiremath and niece Pallavi Swadi.[20]

Baba Kalyani led Kalyani group is now contemplating legal action against his family members, including his nephew Sameer Hiremath and niece Pallavi Swadi—children of his sister Sugandha Hiremath. The grounds are for defamation and for allegedly interfering in the process of justice.(Kalyani group spokesperson confirmed to Mint Newspaper)

The Hiremaths maked a court filing on 22 July 2024, where they called the family asset dealings of Baba Kalyani “authoritarian and opaque". Baba Kalyani’s refusal to part with family wealth on arguments of an absence of common male ancestor is a “classic example of the fact that even when the law has been amended to confer rights on women, it is the mindset of the society which cannot accept such rights of the daughters and their children and still deprives them of their rightful share in the property".

The dispute began last year after Baba Kalyani refused to transfer Hikal shares, worth over ₹1,300 crore, in Sugandha's name.

Sameer and Pallavi have also raised concerns over the way Kalyani has been dealing with family members and the group’s assets, while demanding a partitioning of the Kalyani group’s substantial real estate assets, especially in Pune, Karad and Satara districts in Maharashtra.

During the court hearing on 22 July, the Hiremaths claimed the Kalyani Group alone has a market capitalization of about ₹91,000 crore, of which ₹43,000 crore is the value of the stake held by the promoters, which are predominantly associated with the Kalyanis. The Hiremaths want their share out of this stake and in their 22 July rejoinder the Hiremaths alleged Baba Kalyani of “perjury".[21]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Profile at Bharat Forge . 13 April 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110724000010/http://www.bharatforge.com/investers/board_of_directors.asp . 24 July 2011 . dead .
  2. Web site: Profile at Kalyanigroup Website . 29 May 2007 . 24 October 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221024111804/http://www.kalyanigroup.com/chairman.asp . dead .
  3. Web site: Germany confers Cross of Order of Merit to Babasaheb Kalyani, Kiran . . 9 August 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160419070546/http://www.sify.com/news/germany-confers-cross-of-order-of-merit-to-babasaheb-kalyani-kiran-nagarkar-news-national-mlhtljeceihsi.html . 19 April 2016 . dead.
  4. Web site: Mr. Amit B. Kalyani. Bharat Forge Ltd.
  5. News: Bharat Forge net profit up 70% to Rs 203 crore. Sonavane. Ravindra. 20 May 2015. livemint.com/. 13 January 2018.
  6. News: Babasaheb Neelkanth Kalyani: The modern-day alchemist. Raje. Aparna Piramal. 24 August 2014. livemint.com/. 13 January 2018.
  7. Web site: BITS Pilani — Prominent Alumni.
  8. Web site: Bharat Forge 3.0: Return of Baba Kalyani who changed the face of Indian engineering globally. Priyanka Sangani. 18 May 2012. The Economic Times.
  9. News: Sunita Williams, Baichung Bhutia among Padma awardees. 26 January 2008 . Chennai, India. 26 January 2008. https://web.archive.org/web/20080129031323/http://www.hindu.com/2008/01/26/stories/2008012659641200.htm. 29 January 2008 . The Hindu. dead.
  10. Web site: Baba Kalyani Report on SEZs . 27 July 2022 . epces.in.
  11. Web site: Kalyani Group announces joint venture with Rafael Defence System - the Hindu . . 19 February 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150219092115/http://www.thehindu.com/business/companies/kalyani-group-announces-joint-venture-rafael-defence-system/article6912302.ece?homepage=true . 19 February 2015 . dead .
  12. News: Baba Kalyani . Forbes.
  13. Web site: ACE Entrepreneur – Baba Kalyani, Chairman & Managing Director, Bharat Forge Ltd. The Machinist.
  14. Web site: Hikal Limited: Caught in the Crossfire of a Family Feud . Bru Times . 30 March 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240330173749/https://www.brutimes.com/news/business/hikal-limited-caught-in-the-crossfire-of-a-family-feud . 30 March 2024 .
  15. News: Skaria . George . Not just brother vs brother. Bharat Forge to Hinduja, women are fighting for family business . ThePrint .
  16. Web site: 2023-05-25 . Interview 'I simply want what my parents left for our family,' says Sugandha Hiremath, non-executive director, Hikal . 2023-07-07 . Financialexpress . en.
  17. News: 2023-04-20 . Kalyani trying to oust me from Hikal: Sister . The Times of India . 2023-07-07 . 0971-8257.
  18. News: Hikal ownership dispute: Kalyani family spar over 1993 agreement . Business Standard .
  19. Web site: 2023-05-09 . Inside the ₹1,300 cr spat between billionaire Baba Kalyani and his sister . 2023-07-07 . mint . en.
  20. Web site: Accepting Sister's Children As Coparcerners Sparks Off Gender Debate . 2024-06-23 . BW Legal World . en.
  21. Web site: Laskar . Anirudh . 9 August 2024 . Mint Newspaper . live.