Industrialist and former chairman of Bajaj Group Rahul Bajaj dies at 83, to be cremated with full state honours today

Industrialist and former chairman of Bajaj Group Rahul Bajaj passed away on Saturday, February 12, at his home in Pune. He was 83.

"It is with deep sorrow that I inform you about the passing away of Shri Rahul Bajaj, husband of the late Rupa Bajaj and father of Rajiv/Deepa, Sanjiv/Shefali and Sunaina/Manish. He passed away on the afternoon of 12th February, 2022 in the presence of his closest family members," a statement from Bajaj Group released.

Rahul Bajaj had pneumonia and also a heart problem. He was admitted to the hospital for last one month, said Dr Purvez Grant, the managing trustee at Ruby Hall Clinic.

Rahul Bajaj breathed his last today at 2.30 pm. Bajaj will be cremated with full state honours on Sunday, said Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray.

Rahul Bajaj is survived by two sons, Rajiv Bajaj and Sanjiv Bajaj, and a daughter Sunaina Kejriwal.

Born on June 10, 1938, Rahul Bajaj acted as the chairman of the Bajaj Group for over 40 years. Rahul Bajaj resigned as the chairman of Bajaj Auto in



April last year and was currently the Chairman Emeritus of the firm.

Rahul Bajaj had BA (Honours) in Economics from the University of Delhi, a law degree from Mumbai University and an MBA from Harvard Business School.

Rahul Bajaj took charge of the Bajaj Group in 1965. Under his leadership, the automaker firm saw its turnover growing to Rs 12,000 crore from just Rs 7.2 crore. One of the most popular products of the brand, Bajaj Chetak scooter, became an aspirational symbol for middle class Indian families. The jingle 'Humara Bajaj' became a famous advertisement of its time.

Rahul Bajaj was awarded with the third-highest civilian award Padma Bhushan in 2001. Bajaj also served as a Rajya Sabha MP from 2006-10.

As per February 2021, Rahul Bajaj was ranked at 421 on the Forbes list of the world's billionaires with a net worth of USD 8.2 billion.

Rahul Bajaj also held many other positions, including the chairman of Indian Airlines and chairman of the board of governors of the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay.