Former chairman of Tata Group, Cyrus Mistry died in a road accident in Palghar near Mumbai on Sunday (04/09/2022). He was 54, currently chairman of Shapoorji Pallonji. Mistry was travelling from Ahmedabad to Mumbai in his black coloured Mercedes car.
“The accident took place at 3:15 PM, when Cyrus Mistry was returning to Mumbai from Gujarat's Udvada. The accident took place on a bridge over the Surya river near Chatori Area of Palghar, 135 kms from Mumbai. Dr. Anahita Pandole lost control due to overspeeding and crashed in road divider. Cyrus Mistry died on the spot. It seems like an accident” Palghar district Superintendent of Police, Balasaheb Patil.
Accident photo shows the remains of Mercedes GLC 220d 4MATIC luxury car (MH-47-AB-6705). The impact of the collision was very severe. All airbags in the vehicle had popped out, but it failed to save the lives of the two. Eyewitnesses have said the car was trying to overtake another vehicle at high speed. It hit the road divider on a bridge across Surya river. After investigating, it has revealed that car had many traffic offences. Offences includes cases of jumping the red light and speeding. It is, but, not known who was driving at the time of these rules violation.
Dr. Anahita Pandole was at the wheel when the accident happened. Dr. Anahita Pandole is a top gynecologists at Breach Candy Hospital. Darius Pandole shifted to Rainbow hospital, Vapi, Gujarat. He is MD & CEO of JM Financial Private Equity. Then further airlifted to Mumbai for serious injuries. Dr Anahita Pandole and her husband Darius Pandole was on the front passenger seat. Cyrus Mistry and Jehangir Binshah Pandole, the brother of Darius Pandole, were in the rear seat of the car. Cyrus Mistry died on the spot. Jahangir Pandol was alive on the spot, but, he died during the transit to the hospital; Locals said. Officials declared him dead around 5 pm. Cyrus Mistry and another deceased person Jahangir Binshah Pandole was shifted to JJ. Hosipital, near Kasa Rural in Gujarat for preliminary postmortem on day of accident. Cyrus suffered severe head trauma that caused hemorrhage and had died. The deceased also suffered chest and limbs trauma were his left leg was fractures. They sustains many injuries to vital internal organs. Body suffers from sudden shock when car halts from more than 100km/h to zero. The autopsy was concluded on 2:30 AM and body was kept in morgue. Viscera samples were further sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) in Kalina along with traces of chemicals, alcohol, and poison, among others. Team has kept samples have been kept for DNA analysis too. Their family will collect the body before final rites on Tuesday.
The accident has raised issued on traffic safety as only very few wear seat belts in the backseat. Examination has revealed Cyrus Mistry and Jehangir Pandole were not wearing seat belts. Airbags in vehicles are considered they work only in conjunction with seat belts. Luxury car-maker Mercedes Benz India was cooperating with authorities in the investigation. Their team has collected the vehicle's data which will be decoded for further analysis and submit their report to the government. Officials said - "We are saddened by the demise of Cyrus Mistry and Jehangir Pandole in the unfortunate road accident. At the same time, we are glad to learn that Anahita Pandole and Darius Pandole are recovering. We wish them a speedy recovery. As a responsible brand respecting customer privacy, our team is cooperating with the authorities where possible, and we will provide any clarifications to them directly as required." Mercedez is equipping its vehicles with the latest safety features.
A forensic team of 7 was formed by Maharashtra Police and the state transport department. They concluded that the car had been over-speeding. The car safety features had done their job. The front airbags were deployed as the seat beat were worn. Rear occupants didn't were the seatbelts as there were no scuff or abrasion marks found on the body. So they were thrown off their seat at high speed which caused fatal injuries. There was also an infrastructure issue that led to the crash. The bridge parapet wall was found to be protruding into the road. The design has been found to be faulty. The team also noted "blind spots" at various places on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad highway. This subject has been placed before the Blind Spot Eradication Committee. Efforts are also being made by the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) to cut these blind spots.
He is survived by his wife and two children. One of Mistry’s close family friends said that Mistry’s family members were abroad for a function. The Mistry family whose patriarch, Pallonji Mistry - Cyrus's father - died in June at the age of 93. Pallonjis built luxury hotels, stadiums, palaces, factories and Landmark like Bombay Stock Exchange.
Death of former chairman of Tata Sons shocks the nation and Parsi Community.
On learning about the incident, Hon' Indian Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi tweeted:
Cyrus Mistry came to prominence when he was chosen to lead the Tata Sons after Ratan Tata stepped down in 2012. He became chairman on the basis of his representation from Shapoorji Pallonji Group. Shapoorji Pallonji are the largest shareholder in the Tata Sons. He was the sixth chairman of Tata Sons.
Cyrus joined the Board of Tata Sons in 2006 after his father Pallonji Mistry, retired. October 24, 2016, the board of Tata Sons voted to remove Mistry from the post of Chairman. Till date it is considered as India's most high-profile boardroom coup.
PalV's Kasti- "We offer our Deepest condolences to his family members."