BBC. ‘Once success is achieved, another success is more easily achieved. ’

In an interview with the BBC in 2004, Indian industrialist Anil Ambani said this. At that time, he was working for the same Reliance Industries. Which was started by his father Dhirubhai Ambani and was also with his brother Mukesh Ambani.

But within a few months, things changed rapidly and the two brothers divided the family’s business into two parts.

Anil got what he wanted or which was reflected in his personality. He got telecom, financial services and energy transactions.

Although the reliance group’s main business was petrochemicals, Anil, who was confident and likes to run, seemed more likely to progress in these new-age transactions. India was at the turn of the telecom revolution and was opening the door to foreign investment for energy, insurance and financial services.

In such a situation, Anil Ambani founded the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group in 2006. Many analysts were also betting on the Anil-led Reliance Group. In 2008, he launched the IPO of Reliance Power.

It was a historic moment for the Indian stock market, as the IPO was over-subscribed within minutes. Applications were received for the purchase of about 69 times the shares offered. It was India’s largest IPO at the time.

In 2008, According to a Forbes magazine survey, Anil Ambani became the sixth richest person in the world with a net worth of $ 42 billion.

Continuous reverse move

Anil Ambani, an MBA from Wharton at the University of Pennsylvania, formed the company of power, but the dispute with his brother Mukesh Ambani did not end and this quarrel hindered this business.

Senior journalist Pawan Kumar says, “Anil Ambani started the Dadri gas project. For this, we had to get gas from Krishna Godavari basin (KGD-6) at a cheaper rate. Mukesh Ambani owned kgd-6. He refused to provide gas at a cheaper rate. The battle reached the Supreme Court. ”

In 2010, the Supreme Court ordered that the agreement between the two brothers (Anil and Mukesh) families should be decided in a new way. Also, the court gave the government the right to determine the price of gas.

According to the new agreement, the price of gas was fixed at $4.2 per million metric British thermal unit, while in 2005 the price between the two brothers was fixed at $ 2.34 per million metric British thermal unit for 17 years.

Apart from this, Anil Ambani tried to sign a deal with South African telecom company MTN, but this deal did not succeed.

There was immense scope for expansion in telecom, but there was an equal need for heavy investment.

Journalist Aseem Mandanda says, “It was beginning to appear that every step taken by Anil Ambani was going to be reversed, Anil used to jump into projects that required thousands of crores of rupees. He used to spend with open arms to buy companies abroad and expand his empire. ”

In 2008, with the collapse of Lehman Brothers in america, the whole world was in the grip of an economic recession. Anil Ambani was also not immune to this. Journalist Pawan Kumar says, “After the Lehman Brothers case, rules were tightened in the banking sector in India as well, industrialists started finding it difficult to get loans, Anil Ambani was expanding his business and he needed capital, but now he lacked it drastically. In 2011, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) questioned Anil Ambani in connection with the alleged corruption in the 2G spectrum.

Flashy working style

When Anil took over as chairman of the Reliance-Anil Dhirubhai Ambani group, his grand and shiny style of functioning became evident.

Anil Ambani was often very much discussed in the media.

Asim Mandanda says, “Anil Ambani used to call press conferences to make small announcements related to his telecom business, he used to make a detailed presentation to his officers. ”

Recalling an incident, he says, “He used to visit The Sanchar Bhavan in Delhi a lot, sometimes he would go to the canteen of news agency UNI behind Sanchar Bhawan and meet journalists there. ”

He was closely associated with many Bollywood actors, including Amitabh Bachchan, and was often seen with Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh.

Anil’s fascination with Bollywood is old. He married actress Tina Munim in 1991. Expanding his business, Anil Ambani also stepped into the entertainment sector.

He produced the film in partnership with filmmaker Steven Spielberg’s Dreamworks Studios. He bought the multiplex chain AdLabs and became the largest multiplex owner in India and abroad with 700 screens until 2008.

Reliance Communications’ ‘wrong dial’

When Reliance Infocomm was launched in 2002, it opted for CDMA technology. At the time, it was claimed to be an emerging technology and better than the GSM technology of competing operators, such as Airtel and Hutchison.

But CDMA was limited to 2G and 3G. When 4G and 5G services started in India, RCom started lagging far behind. The situation was such that the company thought it better to withdraw from telecom’s business.

Anil Ambani made the announcement at the annual shareholders’ meeting of Reliance Communications in September 2018. He also announced that they will not move forward in this field anymore. But Anil’s problems did not end there.

“Anil had signed an agreement to sell his telecom assets to his elder brother Mukesh’s Reliance Jio for Rs 18,000 crore. But the deal was dissolved when the Department of Telecommunications told Jio to pay the dues of Reliance Communications. Which Jio refused to accept.

Some relief from Rafale

In 2015, Anil Ambani bought Pipavav Defence and Offshore Engineering for Rs 2,082 crore. His aim was to enter the defence sector, but even here the controversy did not leave him. Opposition Congress accused Anil Ambani of taking undue advantage in the Rafale fighter jet offset deal.

Rahul Gandhi had said at a press conference in Delhi on March 7, 2019, that the Rafale deal was delayed to get Rs 30,000 crore to Anil Ambani. As per the agreement signed by our (UPA) government, the Rafale aircraft would have been in India now. ”

Business recession or mismanagement?

Did Anil Ambani’s companies fall prey to a business slowdown or was it because of mismanagement?

Journalist Pawan Kumar says, “I think both of these are the reasons. Anil Ambani could not concentrate on his business. He failed in one business and turned to another. Of course, he stepped into every field that could have been profitable, but needed enough cash to run a business, which was not in his hands. ”

Poor state of companies

Anil Ambani, who was once the sixth richest person in the world, is now facing charges ranging from debt fraud to money laundering. In 2020, During a hearing in the High Court of England in the dispute over chinese bank loans, Anil Ambani admitted that he had turned upside down and was unable to repay the loan.

Anil Ambani’s lawyer had said in his argument, “Anil Ambani’s net worth is zero, he has turned upside down. Therefore, they cannot pay the dues. Even his family members can’t help him. ”

Anil Ambani’s companies are being probed for a loan fraud of about Rs 17,000 crore.

The Enforcement Directorate has also questioned Anil Ambani in connection with the money laundering case. This is not only making the shareholders of his group company, but also the value of Anil’s own remaining stake a ‘clean chit’. Shares of Reliance Infrastructure have fallen 28 per cent in the last one month.

Shares of Reliance Power have fallen nearly 20 per cent in the last five-six trading sessions.