Kushal Pal Singh | |
|---|---|
 Singh in 2024 | |
| Born | (1931-08-15)15 August 1931 (age 94) |
| Alma mater | Meerut College |
| Occupations |
|
| Spouse | Indira Singh (died 2018) |
| Children | 3, includingRajiv Singh |
| Relatives | Chaudhary Raghvendra Singh (father-in-law) |
| Military career | |
| Allegiance |  India |
| Branch |  Indian Army |
| Service years | 1951-1960[1][2] |
| Rank |  Captain |
| Unit | The Deccan Horse[1] |
| Website | DLF.in |
Kushal Pal Singh (born 15 August 1931) is an Indian billionairereal estate developer and retiredmilitary officer.[3][4] Singh was the chairman andchief executive officer of the Indian real estate companyDLF, founded by his father-in-lawChaudhary Raghvendra Singh, until 2020.[3][5] Singh built DLF into the largest real estate company in India and DLF holds India's largestland bank of more than 10,000 acres.[6][7] His autobiography, namedWhatever the Odds: The Incredible Story Behind DLF, was published in 2011;Jack Welch spoke at the launch.[8]
Singh has been noted for makingGurgaon,Haryana, from a village into a modern and developed city.[9][10] Singh has also been noted for his relationship with theNehru-Gandhipolitical family, which, according to him, benefited his businesses especially during its early stages, and has also been a source of controversy during his career.[9][11][12] In October 2024, Singh was ranked 12th on theForbes list of India's 100 richest, with a net worth of $20.5 billion.[13]
Kushal Pal Singh was born on 15 August 1931 to a family of landlords[14] inBulandshahr,United Provinces,British India.[15] His father, Mukhtar Singh, was a reputed lawyer in Bulandshahr. He completed his schooling atMayo College,Ajmer.[citation needed] Later he graduated in science fromMeerut College,Uttar Pradesh, he pursuedaeronautical engineering in London, England.[16] Singh's uncle was in charge of thestables at the then-Viceregal Lodge, which is nowRashtrapati Bhavan, and during Singh's visit to his uncle, he unexpectedly met the then-Viceroy of India,Lord Wavell, who suggested he pursueriding.[17] His father then sent him to England, hiding from Singh that he incurred financial debt to get him there.[17]
Singh completed his early education in India and went on to graduate in science from Meerut College.Following his graduation, he moved to the United Kingdom, where he studied aeronautical engineering.[18][19] While playingpolo in near Windsor, Singh met an officer of theIndian Army who attempted to convince him to join acavalry unit in the army.[17] According to Singh, he was torn between settling in London with a woman named Julie or pursue a military career in India; however, after being allowed to take theIndian Military Academy entrance exam in England, and later theIndian government agreeing to pay for his journey back to India, Singh decided to join the army.[17] He was latercommissioned into theDeccan Horseregiment.[4] In 1954, as an army officer, Singh led the Deccan Horse in the 1954Republic Dayparade.[4] Singh later resigned from the army, stating that he wanted to work with his father-in-law,Chaudhary Raghvendra Singh, in his company,DLF, which was then known as Delhi Land & Finance and was founded in 1946.[4][20]
After resigning from the army, Singh, together with another retired army officer, initially entered thestud farm business.[4] He also started abattery company; however, the venture was unsuccessful and the losses from sustained from it caused Singh's creditors to take him to court.[4] In 1960, Singh joined American Universal Electric Company and, after its merger with DLF Universal Limited (DLF) in 1979, he took over as the managing director with Chaudhary Raghuvender Singh.[21][22] However, in 1975, Singh almost sold his shares in DLF for 25lakhs after a decision made by his father-in-law Chaudhary Raghvendra and apathy regarding thereal estate sector due tobureaucraticred tape, but Singh at the last minute declined to do the transaction, keeping his shares.[23] In 1976, theGovernment of India introduced theUrban Land (Ceiling and Regulation) Act, 1976 (ULCRA) to grow low-income housing and set limits for the ownership of vacanturban land.[20] The law received a backlash from people who had already invested in the urban land, including Singh, who took over a dormant DLF to attempt to secure exemptions for investors while studying the city’s limitations.[20] He identified theOld-Gurgaon Road as a key link betweenDelhi's southern area andHaryana, that had not passed the ULCRA.[20] DLF used the relaxed land acquisition laws as Singh revitalized the company, starting with its 30 acres and rapidly acquiring land from local landowners and farmers.[20]
During the 1980s, Singh had a chance meeting withRajiv Gandhi, who had then just entered politics and later becamePrime Minister of India, after his car engine had overheated near Singh's property in Haryana.[11] Singh met Rajiv and spoke about business plans forGurgaon and how certain laws were hindering his acquisition of land in the state.[11] Singh later had meetings with Rajiv, and Rajiv convinced his mother, then Indian prime ministerIndira Gandhi, to change the Haryana land laws.[11] DLF then received a license to develop land in 1981 and in 1983, the company received another license.[11] During the early growth of DLF in the 1980s, Singh had a dispute withBansi Lal, a senior politician who had also served as theChief Minister of Haryana.[24] Lal attempted to ruin Singh's business and even have him arrested, which led to Singh going into hiding on the advice then-Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.[24][25] Lal also managed to persuade other Haryana politicians to go against Singh.[25] However, Singh's friendship with Rajiv Gandhi eventually led to Lal stopping his attacks on Singh due to pressure from Rajiv Gandhi.[24][25]
By the 1990s, several large foreign companies, includingAmerican Express,British Airways,IBM, andNestle became tenants of DLF properties due to the growth in outsourcing.[10] In 1995, Singh become chairmen of the company.[26] Singh constructed numerous earthquake-proof office buildings, apartments, shopping malls and leisure facilities in Gurgaon.[10] While he was the chairman of DLF, the company went for aninitial public offering (IPO) in 2007 and made approximately US$2.24 billion, one of the largest IPOs in Indian history.[10]Market capitalization of the company in 2007 increased to $24.5 billion, making Singh and his family one of the richest clans in the world.[27] In the same year, Singh'sCyber City Gurgaon was awarded the world’s firstLEED Platinum City and Community Certification.[28] By 2015, Singh scaled DLF'sland bank to 10,000acres, the largest in India.[6] In 2020, Singh retired from all of his executive positions in DLF, and he was succeeded as chairman of the company his son, Rajiv Singh.[29]
Singh was also one of the initiators forGeneral Electric’s (GE) entry into India during the 1980s.[30] His initial work with GE involved bringing theirgas turbines to India for infrastructure projects and later expanded to advising GE in other industries.[4] Singh also had a key role in establishing India’s first inter-stategaspipeline project, the HBJ (Hazira,Bijeypur,Jagdishpur) pipeline, which was launched in 1986.[4]
In the course of Singh's business career, his close links to theIndian National Congress political party and the party's leadership from theNehru-Gandhi family has been a source of controversy for him.[38][9] In 2016,Mosseck Fonseca, a Panamanian corporate service provider and law firm, stated that Singh qualified as apolitically exposed person (PEP).[39] In 2011, DLF's real estate deal with businessmanRobert Vadra, the husband ofPriyanka Gandhi and son-in-law ofSonia Gandhi, caused controversy for Singh, who was accused of corruption by then-political activistArvind Kejriwal, who later became theChief Minister of Delhi.[12] Kejriwal accused Singh of doing a real estate transaction which heavily favored Vadra in return for political favors.[12] In 2023, theHaryana government stated in thePunjab and Haryana High Court that there were no violations of rules or regulations in the real estate deal between Vadra and DLF.[40]
In 2014, theSecurities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) banned Singh, DLF and 6 others from accessingcapital markets for a period of three years due to three violations, non-disclosure of related party transactions, non-disclosure of financial details related to subsidiaries, and inadequate disclosure of outstanding litigation during DLF's 2007 IPO process.[41] In 2015, SEBI also imposed a heavy fine on Singh, DLF and others; however, DLF appealed SEBI's ruling and the case as of 2019, is in theSupreme Court of India.[42]
In April 2016, Singh's name featured in the list of high-profile names released in thePanama Papers, a set of 11.5 million confidential documents created by the Mossack Fonseca.[43] Singh's son Rajiv, wife Indira, daughter Pia and her husband Timmy Sarna all set up offshore companies in theBritish Virgin Islands through Mossack Fonseca, and are named in the Panama Papers.[43]
Singh was married to Indira Singh, the daughter of Raghvendra Singh, the founder of DLF.[3] Indira died ofcancer in 2018.[44] Singh has one son,Rajiv Singh, and two daughters, Renuka Talwar and Pia Singh.[45] In 2023, Singh stated in an interview that he is in a romantic relationship.[45]
Singh's son, Rajiv, succeeded him as the chairman of DLF in 2020.[46] Rajiv's wife Kavita Singh became an advisor to DLF Commercial Developers Ltd in November 2002. She was also appointed Advisor to DLF Universal on 1 June 2011, with a retainership fee of Rs 250,000 per month and other benefits. Rajiv and Kavita have two daughters, both of whom work for the company.[47] K.P. Singh's elder daughter Renuka is married to G.S. Talwar, a non-executive director at DLF. Their son, Rahul, has joined DLF India Ltd as a "senior management trainee." K.P. Singh's younger daughter Pia Singh is a full-time director with DLF.[27]