Ambanis' feud takes them to Forbes list

NEW YORK: Mukesh and Anil Ambani have yet again made it to a list of richest people compiled by Forbes, only this time the recognition has been bestowed on them because of their running feud.

"Sometimes fighting has a silver lining, as has been the case for Indian brothers Mukesh and Anil Ambani," the US business magazine wrote about the two siblings in a report on the latest list, 'Billionaire Family Feuds'.

In 2005, the two had a collective net worth of seven billion dollars, but in the Forbes' March 2007 list of world's richest persons, Mukesh alone was ranked at 14th place with $20.1 billion and younger brother Anil followed at 18th position with a net worth of $18.2 billion, the report said.

"Unable to get along, the brothers began fighting publicly in late 2004 for control of Reliance Industries, one of India's largest conglomerates. The situation became so untenable that their mother Kokilaben brokered a court- approved peace settlement that entailed divvying up the family businesses," the report noted.

"Once-inseparable brothers Mukesh and Anil Ambani fought bitterly for months over control of Reliance Industries, one of India's largest companies, founded by their late father Dhirubhai."

According to Forbes, the bickering is still continuing between the two brothers despite their mother brokering a settlement to divide the family assets way back in June 2005.