Harshad Mehta was a Bombay-based stockbroker who is famous for being the mastermind of the 1992 stock market scam which was over 4000 crore rupees.
Wiki/Bio
Harshad Mehta was born on 29 July 1954 (47 years old at the time of death) in Paneli Moti, Rajkot, Gujarat. His father’s name is Shantilal Mehta who ran a small textile business and his mother’s name is Rasilaben Mehta. He completed his coding from Raipur Chhattisgarh and then he completed his graduation in B.Com from Lala Lajpat Rai College of Commerce and Economics in 1976. Harshad has three brothers Sudhir Mehta, Hitesh Mehta, and Ashwin Mehta.
Wife & Children
Harshad Mehta was married to Jyoti Mehta and they had a son Atur Mehta.[1]
Career
After completing the B.com Harshad did many odd jobs like selling cement, categorizing diamonds, and many others after that he worked at New India Assurance Company Ltd as a salesman. He has a great interest in the stock market and in 1980 he resigned from the salesman job and started working for P Ambala L who is a stock broker at the Bombay Stock Exchange. He also met broker Prasannan Praji Vandasar Harshit considers him a ‘guru’.
After gaining handsome knowledge of the stock market Harshad started his stock brokerage firm by the name “Growmore Research and Asset Management” in 1984. By 1991, Harshit Mehta was popular among the people and on thousands of crore rupees through his deeds. His image in the market is so massive that people called him the “Amitabh Bachchan of the stock market” and “The Big Bull”. He also bought many luxury properties and a collection of fancy cars including a Toyota Lexus worth almost ₹45 lakh which was very costly at that time.
Harshad Mehta-1992 Scam
Harshit was the mastermind of the 1992 scam in the early 90s, banks were restricted from investing in the stock market but Harshad, was connected with many higher-level officials of banks through them harshit Received a loan from the bank at the bank higher interest rate they also issued fake bank receipts on his name. He used to invest in a few selected stocks with huge amounts of money and also tell other investors to invest in these stocks through which the price of shares increased in very little time then Harshit Mehta sold the shares at very high prices and he received a huge amount of profit.[1]
This data tells the money that banks lost.
| National Housing Bank (NHB) | ₹1,199.39 cr |
| State Bank Of Saurashtra | ₹175.04 cr |
| SBI Capital Markets Ltd (SBI Caps) | ₹121.23 cr |
| Standard Chartered Bank | ₹300.00 cr |
| Total | ₹1,795.66 cr |
He manupute ACC share price from rupees 200 to 9000 (4,500% returns) only in three months.
Expose
Sucheta Dalal (Journalist) was fascinated by the luxurious lifestyle led by Harshad Mehta which he earned in a short period then Suchita started investigating the sources of Harshad income. On 23 April 1992, Sucheta published an article in the Times of India and she explained how Harshit defrauded Rs 500 crore from the treasury of the State Bank of India.
In 1993, Suchita also published a book “The Scam: Who Won, Who Lost, Who Got Away”.
Sucheta Dalal was awarded with Padma Shri in 2006.
Arrest
In November 1992, Harshad Mehta and his brothers, Sudhir and Ashwin were arrested by the CBI, CBI charged 72 criminal offenses and over 500 criminal action cases against Harshad Mehta. He spent almost 3 months in jail. After that, Harshad hired the famous lawyer Ram Jethmalani for his case and he was granted bail from the high court of Bombay.
After being granted bail Harshad Organizer press conference in which he claimed that he paid ₹1 crore to Prime Minister Narasimha Rao as a bride to get him away from the case but Indian National Congress Party declined all the allegations made by Harshad Mehta Also, after investigation, no evidence was found against Narasimha Rao.
In 1992, the Reserve Bank of India established the Janakiraman Committee to investigate the Harshad Mehta Scam. After investigation, the committee Announced the scam of 4025 crore rupees which was 24500 crore rupees if put into perspective in 2024.[1]
In 1999, the High Court of Bombay Sentenced Harshad to 5 years of detention with three others for ₹ 381 million Maruti Udyog limited Scam.
Death
When Harshad Mehta was in the Thane prison he complained of chest pain then and he was taken to Thane Civil Hospital. On 31st December 2001, Harshad Mehta died due to a hurt ailment in the Thane Civil Hospital.
Movies & Web Series
In 2020, a web series named ‘Scam 1992- The Harshad Mehta Story’ inspired by Harshad’s life, was released on Sony LIV.
In 2021, another movie ‘The Big Bull’ is also based on Harshad’s life and scam.
Net Worth
In 1992, Harshad Mehta’s net worth was estimated to be $475 million which is 3542 crore Indian Rupees.
In 1992, Harshad paid the highest income tax which is Rs 24 crore.
Facts about Harshad Mehta
- He belongs to a middle-class Gujarati Jain Family.
- His zodiac sign is Leo.
- He own various luxury cars including Hindustan Motors Contessa, Lexus LS400, Fiat Padmini.
- He owned a sea facing luxury 12,000 sq ft penthouse in Worli.
- He was also known as the ‘Amitabh Bachchan of stock market’ and ‘The Big Bull’.
- In July 2022, Jyoti Mehta, launched a website to defend her husband. She said that the jail authority negligence medical support to Harshad due to which he died.[1]
Question & Answers
Q. Who is Harshad Mehta?
Ans. He was a Bombay-based stockbroker who is famous for being the mastermind of the 1992 stock market scam which was over 4000 crore rupees.
Q. Who is the son of Harshad Mehta?
Ans. Atur Harshad is the son of Harshad Mehta. He is a businessman, investor, and entrepreneur.
Q. Where is the family of Harshad Mehta?
Ans. As per the report, Harshad Mehta’s family is now settled in the United States.
Q. How did Harshad Mehta die?
Ans. On 31st December 2001, Harshad Mehta died due to a hurt ailment in the Thane Civil Hospital.
Q. How much is the net worth of Harshad Mehta?
Ans. In 1992, Harshad Mehta’s net worth was estimated to be $475 million which is 3542 crore Indian Rupees.
Q. Who plays Harshad Mehta role in ‘scam 1992’?
Ans. Pratik Gandhi play Harshad Mehta role in ‘scam 1992.
Also, read the Biography of Ghanshyam Tech (Art of Trading)