Has the missing Rs 2K cr biz baron Kakkad landed in US?

It has been a week, since city-based businessman Sunil Kakkad who established the now Rs 2000 cr turnover business Sai Info Sytem (SIS), went missing. Born on May 10, 1971, in the house of a well-known doctor of Tharad Dr Surendra Kakkad, he was brought up in north Gujarat.

dna tried to put together the rise and fall of the enigma called Kakkad.

People who know him claim that he was self-obsessed and overambitious. Usually, people keep pictures of the almighty or parents in office. But Kakkad put up pictures of himself in a three-piece suit even on the elevator walls of his office building in Vastrapur.

Kakkad’s family is now settled in the US. When his father passed away about two years ago, the who’s who of Ahmedabad had attended the funeral.

Kakkad, the youngest son in the family, after studying engineering from PSGVP Mandals College of Engineering at Shahada in Maharashtra in 1992, founded Sai InfoSystem (SIS) with an investment of Rs70,000 in partnership with Vijay Mandora in Ahmedabad in April 1992. Even today, industry experts compared their friendship with that of Jai and Viru of Bollywood blockbuster, Sholay.

Initially, Kakkad started offering IT solutions, including PCs and hardware to companies operating from small offices or home. Having started with just four people, SIS diversified into manufacturing hardware, software development system integration and telecom services.

Again, in partnership with Mandora, Kakkad forayed into retail business of computer peripherals under the brand name of eMall. At that time, Mandora was deputy managing director of the company and SIS also expanded its retail chain. However, the duo parted two years ago. Mandora took over the retail business under the brand name of ecs Infotech.

Incidentally, Kakkad was interested in entering the capital market. Before foraying into the telecom sector, SIS had planned to raise funds for expanding its retail chain of computer devices and IT solution across the country. Since 2008, Kakkad has been planning to launch IPO (initial public offer). Initially he wanted to raise Rs150 crore. Later, the amount increased to over Rs200 crore. Due to unfavourable market conditions in 2010, SIS shelved the IPO launch.

In early 2009, after touching the Rs1,000-crore turnover mark for the first time, SIS entered the telecom sector and started manufacturing IP phones. Around that time, Kakkad joined hands with state-owned telecom company, BSNL, for video-telephony. National Innovation Council chairman Sam Pitroda had launched a few products and services of SIS in the past.

After 18 years, the company’s turnover increased to Rs1,200 crore by the end of 2010. At that time, Kakkad had planned to invest Rs200 crore in a special economic zone (SEZ), eyeing telecom and IT products. The company was planning a hardware-oriented solution work at the Kandla SEZ and a software solution work and R&D at the Global Village Tech Park in Bangalore.

About four to five years ago, SIS started growing vertically and Kakkad began hiring executives from home and abroad. He even poached people from Tata Tele, Wipro and other companies from Mumbai, Pune, Jaipur, Delhi and other cities. However, when employees realised that the company was not in a position to pay salaries, they started leaving SIS about six to seven  and months back.

In 2011, Kakkad started getting into the executive committee body of industry associations. When Assocham started its office in Gujarat, Kakkad was part of the executive committee for the first year. In mid-2011, Kakkad showed interest in taking charge of president of ICT Industry Association, Gujarat Electronics & Software Industries Association (Gesia).

The previous year, SIS was platinum sponsor of The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE) and Sunil Kakkad president of the Gujarat chapter of Indo-American Chamber of Commerce (IACC).  Having missed the opportunity of sharing the dais with chief minister Narendra Modi at Vibrant Gujarat 2011, Kakkad insisted on becoming the Gesia president again for 2012-13.

He was pretty active in Vibrant Gujarat 2013 and Gesia had erected a huge stall at the event. But post-Vibrant Gujarat 2013, Kakkad stopped attending programmes and events of Gesia. It is believed that he had even stopped attending meetings of TiE as well as IACC.

Has Kakkad resigned as CMD?
Rumours were rife that Sunil Kakkad has gone to the US last week to be with his family there. Also, industry sources close to him have heard from company insiders that Kakkad has put in his papers as chairman and managing director of SIS. However, he retains his holding in the company.

At present, the CEO, Colonel Navin Bhasin, has taken charge. The employees of the company said Bhasin has assured them of paying their salaries.