Final rites set for Vohra family in car crash

Relatives and friends of Mohinder Singh Vohra mourn at his home in Nairobi. Mohinder and three other family members died in a tragic road crash near Makindu town. [Elvis Ogina, Standard]

Four family members who died in a car crash on Sunday will be cremated on Thursday.

Mohinder Singh Vohra, the co-founder and board director at Sarova Hotels & Resorts, his wife Swarna Vohra, their daughter Reena Vohra and daughter-in-law Atu Vohra died in a car crash at  Makindu, along the Mombasa-Nairobi highway.

The demise of the four family members came a year after the death of Mr Vohra's son, Jaideep Singh Vohra, who was also a director at the Sarova Hotel chain.

The family died on their way back to Nairobi from the Makindu Sikh Temple, where they had earlier attended a religious ceremony to mark a one-year anniversary of Jaideep's death.

Jaideep died on November 24, 2017 in a road accident along the Amboseli-Namanga road, while on his way to watch the East Africa Safari Classic Rally, for which he was the director.

Raju Kishnani, another director for the rally who was in the car with Jaideep, survived and was flown to Nairobi for treatment.

Atu Vohra, who died on Sunday, was Jaideep's wife, while Saveer Vohra, the 19-year-old driver of the car in Sunday's crash and the only survivor, is the son to Atu and Jaideep Vohra.

Recovering well

According to the family, Saveer is recovering well and has been discharged from the hospital. It is still unclear whether there are more survivors within the immediate nuclear family, aside from Saveer.

The family was too upset to speak on the circumstances surrounding the deaths, yesterday, instead directing The Standard team to the spokesperson of Sarova Hotels and Resorts.

For now, the relatives are focusing on funeral rites for the four.

"The final prayers will be held at Sikh Temple Pangani on Thursday October, 25, 2018 from 10.30am. The cortege will then leave for Hindu Shamshan Bhumi, Kariokor at noon for the cremation," they stated.

The Vohra family is one of the wealthiest families in Kenya.

The family co-owns the Sarova group of hotels and resorts along with John Ngata Kariuki, the brother to former chief spy, James Kanyotu and former Member of Parliament of Kirinyaga Central.

Sarova Hotels and Resorts include Sarova Woodlands, a five-star hotel valued at Sh1 billion; Sarova Mara Camp, Sarova Stanley, Sarova Panafric, Ambassadeur Hotel, Sarova Whitesands Beach Resort and Spa, as well as three hotels in London, UK.

The group of hotels and resorts was founded by Kariuki and Gurcharan Singh Vohra, the patriarch of the Vohra family and father to Mohinder Vohra.

Gurcharan, a man who was known for his business acumen as much as philanthropic projects such as the famous "Bring Zack Home" died on in October 2013, aged 78.

Another one of Gucharan's son and Mohinder's brother, Sandy Vohra, also died in a fatal road accident in Ethiopia in 2006.