The Full Story Of The Massive Feud Between The Billionaire Ambani Brothers

ambani brothers

India's richest man Mukesh Ambani and his brother Anil Ambani have been in a bitter feud ever since the death of their father in 2002.

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Ambani's death sparked a feud for control which ultimately lead to the split of the Reliance Group.

Their mother brokered a demerger in 2005, which gave Mukesh control of oil and gas, petrochemicals, refining and manufacturing while Anil took reign over electricity, telecoms and financial services. 

Since the split, the brothers have feuded via press conferences, meetings with the ministers, letters to the Prime Minister, interviews to news channels and dragging each other to court.

We've put together a timeline of their feud.

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July 2002: Dhirubhai Ambani dies

ambani brothers
Mukesh Ambani (left) Anil Ambani (right) carry the body of their father AP

Dhirubhai Ambani, the founder of Reliance Industries died in 2002 after suffering a massive stroke.

The patriarch hadn't left a will and his elder son Mukesh Ambani became chairman and managing director of Reliance Industries Ltd while his younger son, Anil Ambani was made vice-chairman.

Mukesh reportedly tried to oust Anil from the board.

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November 2004: The private rift between the brothers becomes public

Mukesh Ambani 1

In an interview with CNBC TV18 Mukesh Ambani admitted that the brothers disagreed on the running of the Ambani Group. He said: "Well, there are issues which are ownership issues. These are in the private domain, but as far as Reliance is concerned it is a very-very strong professional company."

At the time the Ambanis had a 46.67% stake in Reliance Industries Ltd, the public 13.48%, and foreign institutional investors 22.85%.

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June 2005: Their mother, Kokilaben, intervenes and splits Reliance Group into 2

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Mukesh Ambani flanked by his mother Kokilaben (left) wife Nita (right) AP

The Ambani brothers settled their dispute after their mother Kokilaben intervened and arranged a de-merger.

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December 2005: The split is approved as Mukesh gets Reliance Industries & IPCL, and Anil gets Reliance Infocomm, Reliance Energy, and Reliance Capital

Ambani Brothers

The Bombay High Court approved the de-merger for Reliance Industries shareholders after it was accepted by the Bombay Stock Exchange and the National Stock Exchange.

Mukesh Ambani got Reliance Industries and IPCL, while Anil was given control of Reliance Infocomm, Reliance Energy and Reliance Capital.

Some shareholders opposed the decision saying it was more a family arrangement than a business separation.

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November 2006: Anil Ambani's Reliance Group challenges a gas contract signed by Mukesh's company during the split

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Anil Ambani, who controlled Reliance Group, publicly questions the terms of the gas supply agreement signed between Mukesh's Reliance Industries Ltd and Anil's Reliance Natural Resources Ltd at the time of the demerger. 

Mukesh's exploration company was reportedly going to sell gas to Anil's power company at a reduced rate. When the government would not approve the deal, Anil suspected covert dealings with his brother. 

Anil also said the agreements were signed before Anil took charge of them. 

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2008: Anil accuses Indian Petroleum Minister Murli Deora of secret dealings with his brother

Murli Deora
Petroleum Minister Murli Deora

Mukesh's exploration company was supposed to sell gas to Anil's power company at a discounted rate. The deal was vetoed by Deora who said neither company had the right to trade the government's gas at discounted rates. Anil accused Deora of siding with his brother and said the ruling would essentially double Mukesh's gas profits to £6 billion.

At a press conference with shareholders in 2009 Anil said: RIL has tried every trick in the book and apparently several outside the book to back out of its solemn, legal and contractual obligations. It is plain and simple corporate greed of Reliance Industries."

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September 2008: Anil Ambani files a defamation suit over statements Mukesh made to The New York Times

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Anil Ambani leaving a Supreme Court hearing AP

Anil Ambani filed a $2.12 billion defamation suit against Mukesh for remarks he made during an interview with The New York Times.

The Times had written about an 'intelligence agency', a network of lobbyists and spies who gathered information about India's most powerful. Mukesh had in response said that they had 'de-merged all of that' and that those activities were overseen by Anil.

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June 2008: One of Anil's companies is suspected of losing a deal because of Mukesh's involvement

Mukesh Ambani
AP

Anil's company, Reliance Communications, called off merger talks with South Africa's MTN, a multinational mobile telecommunications company. The company said there were legal and regulatory issues to deal with.

Mukesh's claim on the shares of Anil's telecom firm was also blamed for the failed deal.

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Summer 2009: Anil blames his brothers' company for power cuts sweeping across India

manmohan singh india

Anil Ambani addressed a letter to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in which he said: "Major power cuts, especially in north India, have become commonplace, causing grave hardship to hundreds of millions of consumers – sadly, all a result of RIL’s corporate greed." He also asked that the oil ministry stay out of a commercial dispute between the companies.

In 2008, opposition parties had alleged that the Prime Minister's Office had interfered with Reliance's businesses after Singh's meeting with Mukesh. At the time the office released a statement that said: The PM meets corporate leaders all the time to discuss national economic issues, as any leader of a modern economy would… people of India know Manmohan Singh better than to believe he would get involved in corporate affairs."

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2009: Brothers live close-by but barely speak

Seawind building
A satellite shot of Sea Wind see with its helipad and pool

The Ambani brothers lived in "Seawind" in an upscale neighborhood of South Mumbai, and restricted meetings to  family gatherings or conferences. The Guardian reports:

"There's no conversation, let alone warmth. Sometimes they are forced to shake hands, but they do not look at each other," said the friend.

"It's a tragedy because they were a class act. One used to start a sentence and the other would finish it. How does that kind of chemistry go wrong?"

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July 2009: A Mumbai court is forced to order the brothers' companies to enter a gas supply agreement

ambani brothers

A Mumbai's High Court gives Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries and Anil Ambani's Reliance Natural Resources Ltd. a deadline: Six weeks to sign a gas supply agreement

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August 2009: Anil Ambani takes out ads criticizing his brother's Reliance Industries and the government

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Anil Ambani's Reliance Natural Resources Ltd. placed daily advertisements in The Times of India, India's largest newspaper, and 32 other papers alleging that the Indian government had sided with Mukesh's Reliance Industries to raise the price of gas from the The Krishna Godavari basin. 

The ad claimed Reliance Industries would gain huge profits and electricity bills would jump by 50%. 

Click here to see 4 of the ads >

August 2009: The Indian finance minister begs the brothers to stop feuding for the sake of the capital markets

pranab mukherjee
India's Finance Minister, Pranab Mukherjee

India's finance minister Pranab Mukherjee said the corporate dispute had become a matter of "national interest" and requested the brothers to resolve their dispute privately. He feared the impact of their feud on the markets.

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October 2009: The brothers go to the Supreme Court over the gas dispute

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Reliance Industries appeals the High court ruling at the Supreme court. Meanwhile the government filed an appeal at the court saying that gas is state-owned and can't be claimed by corporate entities.

May 2010: Supreme Court rules in Mukesh's favor

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The Supreme Court ruled in Mukesh's favor and declared that Reliance Industries could sell gas to Anil Ambani’s Reliance Natural Resources Ltd.  at government-set prices that were higher than those agreed on in a 2005 family agreement. Anil said that he would not request a review of the verdict. The companies were given six weeks to renegotiate their agreement.

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May 2010: Ambani's mother brokers a peace agreement between the brothers

Dhirubhai ambani
In happier times, Dhirubhai Ambani (center) flanked by his sons

Kokilaben brokered a peace agreement between the brothers. Officials of Reliance Industries Ltd. and Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group both received notes that said the Ambani brothers would draft a non-compete agreement, to replace an earlier one that obviously didn't work.

June 2010: Anil Ambani withdraws his defamation suit

Anil ambani
AP

A spokesman for or the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group issued a statement: "Yes, we have withdrawn the suit claiming Rs 10,000 crore (or $2.12 billion) as damages."

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2010: Was Mukesh rubbing his wealth in his brothers' face?

antilla
Hirsch Bedner Associates

Since the empire was divided, Mukesh, known to be the more modest of the brothers built a 27 story building called Antilla. It has car parking for 300, a helipad and an "oxygen room".

Mukesh has a net worth of $27 billion while Anil has a net worth of $8.8 billion.

August 2010: Anil says the feud has been resolved

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The Ambani brothers shake hands at an awards show

"We have parted on a very cordial note and investors should have no fear whatsoever. This is a one-way street...it's a car with no reverse gear... I look at it simply as an issue that needed to be resolved and it has been resolved. It's a new beginning for me and going forward. I am sure Mukesh will do extremely well."

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Is their feud about to enter the financial sector?

ambani, Shaw

Sources close to India's richest man, Mukesh Ambani, have said that the billionaire intends to use the joint venture between his Reliance Industries, and American DE Shaw Group, to launch what is being dubbed The Bank of Ambani.

Anil's Reliance Capital already operates in the financial services sector, so if Reliance bank plans take off, the two could face-off again.

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