Indian-origin British hotelier sued by parents

Philippine Times (IANS) Wednesday 22nd February, 2012

Parents of a 60-year-old Indian-origin hotelier, reportedly one of Britain's wealthiest men, are sueing him for 100 million pounds (around $157 million), claiming their son took the family business for himself.

Jasminder Singh, chairman of the Radisson Edwardian Hotels, is accused of renouncing the Sikh tradition of sharing family wealth and barring his parents from their multi-million pound business, the Daily Express reported.

His 84-year-old father, Bal Mohinder Singh, stands to take a third of the family fortune if he wins the high court battle against his son.

The family fortune is reportedly worth an estimated 415 million pounds.

In a statement to the court in London Tuesday, Bal Mohinder Singh said he and his wife Satwant were "deeply ashamed that Jasminder should publicly renounce his cultural heritage".

The system of joint family ownership of all assets is based on religious teaching and widely practiced by Sikh and Hindu communities around the world, he said.

"For Jasminder to deny that and claim all the credit and ownership for himself will be shocking to wide sections of those communities. That is why his mother and I are so ashamed."

The hotelier's name was on the family's assets purely because he was a chartered accountant and the Singhs' representative, the court heard.

Singh also accused his son of trying to force his parents out of the 10-million-pound house they share near Ascot racecourse in Berkshire.

Jasminder Singh denies ever having been told by his parents they were a "joint Hindu family" and that property acquired by any of them was "joint family property".

He also denied having a particularly religious upbringing.