Kushal Pal Singh

Kushal Pal Singh (born 15 August 1931) is an Indian billionaire real estate developer, and the chairman and CEO of real estate developer DLF Limited, founded by his father-in-law Chaudhary Raghvender Singh.^[3][4][5] DLF holds an estimated 10,255 acres (42 km²) of land, with about 3,000 acres (12 km²) in Gurugram, called DLF City.

Kushal Pal Singh_Latest Image_14th November 2024

Kushal Pal Singh
Born	(1931-08-15) 15 August 1931 (age 93) Bulandshahr, United Provinces, British India (now in Uttar Pradesh, India)
Alma mater	Meerut College
Occupation(s)	Chairman and CEO, DLF Limited
Spouse	Indira Singh
Children	3, including Rajiv Singh
Military career
Allegiance	India
Service / branch	Indian Army
Years of service	1951-1960[1][2]
Rank	Captain
Unit	The Deccan Horse[1]
Website	DLF.in

He was ranked the 8th richest person in the world in Forbes 2008.^[6] His autobiography, named Whatever the Odds: The Incredible Story Behind DLF, was published in 2011; Jack Welch spoke at the launch.^[7] According to Forbes India Rich list of 2024, he is the 7th richest person in India with an estimated net worth of US$25 billion

In October 2024, Singh was ranked 12th on the Forbes list of India’s 100 richest tycoons, with a net worth of $20.5 billion.^[8]

Early life and career

K.P. Singh was born on 15 August 1931 in Bulandshahr, Uttar Pradesh in a Tewatia Jat family.^[9] His father, Chaudhary Mukhtar Singh, was a reputed lawyer in Bulandshahr. After graduating in science from Meerut College, Uttar Pradesh, he pursued aeronautical engineering in the UK and was subsequently selected to the Indian Army by British Officers Services Selection Board, UK. He was commissioned into the Deccan Horse in 1951.^[1][10] In 1960 he joined American Universal Electric Company and, soon after its merger with DLF Universal Limited in 1979, he took over as the managing director with Chaudhary Raghuvender Singh.^[11][12]

Activities

Kushal Pal Singh constructed numerous earthquake-proof office buildings, apartments, shopping malls and leisure facilities in Gurgaon. While he was the chairman of DLF, the company went for an initial public offering (IPO) in 2007 and made about US$2.24 billion, one of the largest IPOs in India. Market capitalisation of the company increased to $24.5 billion, making Singh and his family one of the richest clans in the world.^[13] Jack Welch, the former chairman and CEO of General Electric, said in an interview that Singh was one of the initiators for GE's entry into India.^{[14][failed verification]}

Awards and recognitions

• Decoration of Officer of the Order of St. Charles, on 4 October 2010, conferred by Prince Albert II of Monaco for his contributions as Honorary Consul General of Monaco in Delhi for the previous two decades.
• Padma Bhusan Award, on 26 January 2010, conferred by Government of India.
• Recognition by Forbes magazine as the richest real estate baron and eighth richest person in the world, on 24 March 2008.
• The Samman Patra Award, in 2000, conferred by Government of India for being one of the top taxpayers of Delhi region.
• Delhi Ratna Award, conferred by Government of Delhi for his valuable contribution towards the development of Delhi.^[15][16]
• A special award conferred by NDTV, at the Indian of the Year Award Function held on 17 January 2008, for his contribution towards growth of Indian economy.
• In 2011 he received the Entrepreneur of the Year award at The Asian Awards.^[17]

Personal life and family

Singh is married to Indira Singh, the daughter of Raghvendra Singh,^[3] the founder of DLF Limited. K.P. Singh has one son, Rajiv Singh, and two daughters, Renuka Talwar and Pia Singh.^[18]

Singh's son, Rajiv, succeeded him as the chairman of the DLF group in 2020.^[19] Rajiv's wife Kavita Singh became an advisor to DLF Commercial Developers Ltd in November 2002. She was also appointed Advisor to DLF Universal Ltd. 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.^[20] K.P. Singh's elder daughter Renuka is married to G.S. Talwar, a non-executive director at DLF Ltd. 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.^[13]

Controversy

In April 2016, Singh's name featured in the list of high-profile names released in the Panama Papers, a set of 11.5 million confidential documents created by the Panamanian corporate service provider Mossack Fonseca. Singh's son, wife, daughter Pia and her husband Timmy Sarna all set up offshore companies in the British Virgin Islands through Mossack Fonseca, and are named in the Panama Papers.^[21]

References

1. Namburu, Manoj (October 2007). Moguls of Real Estate. Roli Books Private Limited. ISBN 978-9351940746.
2. The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. "Kushal Pal Singh". britannica.com. Archived from the original on 30 March 2019. Retrieved 30 March 2019.
3. "The trials and triumphs of K.P. Singh : Leisure". India Today. 18 November 2011. Archived from the original on 1 October 2015. Retrieved 2 September 2015.
4. "DLF". Dlf.in. Archived from the original on 31 March 2006. Retrieved 2 September 2015.
5. Mehta, Ankita (4 July 2017). "From Mukesh Ambani to Lakshmi Mittal: Meet 6 Indian billionaires who own the most expensive private jets [PHOTOS]". www.ibtimes.co.in. Retrieved 18 March 2024.
6. "#8 KP Singh - Forbes.com". Forbes. Archived from the original on 3 May 2008. Retrieved 3 May 2008.
7. "DLF Chairman K. P. Singh's autobiography launched in Delhi : North, News". India Today. 15 November 2011. Archived from the original on 16 January 2016. Retrieved 5 September 2015.
8. "India's 100 Richest". India’s 100 Richest. 9 October 2024.
9. "Birthday of K P Singh, Gurgaon, Shakeera, Haryana". bhaskar.com. Archived from the original on 12 June 2015. Retrieved 2 September 2015.
10. "DLF's KP Singh Becomes Third Indian Trillionaire". Indianrealtynews.com. Archived from the original on 25 November 2010. Retrieved 2 September 2015.
11. "Kushal Pal Singh". Encyclopædia Britannica. Archived from the original on 8 April 2014. Retrieved 2 September 2015.
12. "#8 KP Singh". Forbes. Archived from the original on 17 August 2015. Retrieved 2 September 2015.
13. Archived 9 November 2007 at the Wayback Machine
14. "K.P. Singh almost sold DLF stake for Rs 26 lakh". Business Today. 15 November 2011. Archived from the original on 9 July 2015. Retrieved 1 November 2019.
15. "Dr Kushal Pal Singh" (PDF). WCRCLeaders.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 July 2014. Retrieved 2 March 2017.
16. "About DLF – Chairman's Profile". DLF. Archived from the original on 3 March 2017. Retrieved 2 March 2017.
17. "DLF Chairman K P Singh named Asian Entrepreneur of Year at Asian Awards". timesofindia-economictimes. Archived from the original on 16 January 2016. Retrieved 2 September 2015.
18. "Whatever the Odds: The candid story of corporate legend K. P. Singh". India Today. 20 November 2011. Archived from the original on 3 October 2015. Retrieved 2 September 2015.
19. Bahree, Megha. "Son Of Property Baron Kushal Pal Singh Succeeds His Father As Chairman Of DLF". Forbes. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
20. "KP Singh's grandson joins DLF as trainee". Business Today. 11 July 2011. Archived from the original on 30 July 2014. Retrieved 2 September 2015.
21. "$10 mn as capital: 10 members of KP Singh's DLF family, three BVI firms". Indian Express. 4 April 2016. Archived from the original on 6 September 2017. Retrieved 6 September 2017.