Debt trap: Sheth owed money to many

Family members,who were in a shock after the incident,refused to comment.

According to neighbours,a nationalised bank had even put a recovery notice at one of his offices at Sukh Sagar Building in Girgaum Chowpatty. This perhaps added to his stress. While the notice was part-torn when this correspondent visited the office premises,neighbours said Sheth’s staff had got the page removed.

Another friend who spoke to Sheth last week said banks had come knocking. “Though he never mentioned the magnitude,he was upset,” he said.

Over the past 30 years,Sheth built Raj Travel World to become one of the leading travel and tour organisers in the country. People close to him said he was very hardworking and a great motivator. His company had 79 offices across the country and over 500 employees. It,however,started running into trouble with mounting debt over the past few years. “His plan to enter the aviation business through Raj Air burdened him with more debt,” said the source. The company also spent heavily on advertisements,but this did not translate into higher revenues.

Raj Air had to pay Rs 5 crore to the IATA towards billing and settlement plan. Raj Air,which was the first and probably the only air service for pilgrims going to Tirupati,too,did not take off,said a business associate.

“His business started sliding when he started a trend of undercutting and offering discounted prices. His international suppliers were the first to be affected as numbers dwindled. The second business model that went against him is the interstate bus service,which failed to get good business even after offering amenities,” the associate added.