In a massive development, an Indian-origin UK billionaire family on Friday was sentenced to 4 to 4.5 years in jail by a Swiss court for exploiting their domestic workers. As per reports, four members of the billionaire Hinduja family have been sentenced to prison with terms ranging from four to four & a half years. The Hindujas were convicted for exploiting their domestic worker who was of Indian origin as well. However, the Swiss court did not find the family guilty of human trafficking.
The court found that the four members – Prakash Hinduja and his wife Kamal, and their son Ajay and daughter-in-law Namrata – guilty of providing unauthorised employment, giving meager health, if any, benefits, and paying wages that were less than one-tenth the pay for such jobs in Switzerland. Apart from the Hinduja family the court also sentenced the Hinduja family's business manager Najib Ziazi to a jail term of 18 months.
Notably, During the trial, the prosecutors established that Kamal Hinduja had constituted a 'climate of fear'. The explored domestic workers were working at the Hinduja’s lakeside villa in Geneva. As per the court, the workers were forced to work with little or no vacation time and worked even later hours for receptions. During the hearing, the prosecutors also highlighted that the Hindus spent more on their dogs but not on their domestic help workers.
Hindujas' budget document titled 'Pets' showcased that the family spent 8,584 Swiss francs (Rs 8.09 lakh) annually on their family dog. On the other hand, an Indian domestic worker at Hinduja household was at one point paid as little as seven Swiss francs (Rs 660) for a working day that lasted as long as 18 hours.
Now, the question arises who are Hindujas? Below is all about the Hinduja family-
Who are the Hindujas?
As per reports, Parmanand Deepchand Hinduja founded a commodities-trading business in 1914 in British India's Sindh region. The business was diversified by his four sons. They initially found success distributing Bollywood films internationally. Srichand, the eldest son, passed away in 2023. Following Srichand's death, his brothers Gopichand, Prakash, and Ashok remained. The three younger brothers had previously argued with Srichand and his daughter Vinoo over the family's wealth but settled their differences in 2022.
The Hinduja family has interests in finance, media, and energy sectors and owns stakes in six publicly traded Indian companies. Their collective wealth is at least $14 billion, ranking them among Asia's top 20 wealthiest families. Notably, Prakash Hinduja and his brothers oversee an industrial conglomerate that spans information technology, media, power, real estate, and healthcare sectors. Forbes estimates the Hinduja family's net worth at approximately $20 billion.