Quaid-i-Azam's great-grandson Ness Wadia sentenced to jail on drug charge

TOKYO: Ness Wadia, the great-grandson of Quaid-i-Azam, has been sentenced to jail for two years  for possessing drugs in  Japan.

Wadia, who’s also the co-owner of the Kings XI Punjab cricket league team, was arrested last month at the New Chitose Airport in Japan’s Hokkaido island for possessing drugs.

Soon after the news broke that Nusli Wadia’s son, Ness Wadia, had got a two-year prison term,  shares of companies controlled by the 283-year-old Wadia Group plummeted.

Meanwhile, a group spokesman was reported to have said  that the “suspended” jail term won’t restrain Wadia in discharging any of his responsibilities within the group and outside. adding that  "Ness Wadia is in India. The judgment is clear. It is a suspended sentence."

While  a UK based media outlet   reported Tuesday that Ness Wadia who controls the aviation-to-biscuits conglomerate had spent sometime in detention before his indictment on March 20 for possessing about 25 grams of a substance.

 The Sapporo District Court had handed him a two-year prison sentence, which was suspended for five years, the report said.

The 47-year-old  Ness is the grandson of Dina Wadia who was the only child of Jinnah with his wife Rattanbai Petit, known as Ruttie Jinnah. Ness Wadia works for his grandfather’s company Wadia Group and is a resident of India.  He is known as an accomplished businessman and is the co-owner of the Kings XI Punjab in Indian Premier League.

He is the elder son of Nusli Wadia, India’s 11th richest tycoon with a net worth of $7.1 billion, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The group traces its history to 1736 when it started with building ships for the East India Company before expanding into textiles, chemicals, plantations, consumer goods and aviation.