How an iron cage for his company's silver jubilee event killed a US-based Indian CEO

Sanjay Shah, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Vistex, died in a freak accident during a company event that was being held at the Ramoji Film City inHyderabad in Indian state of Telangana, according to media reports on Friday (Jan 19). Vistex is based in Illinois and was holding a two-day celebration for its silver jubilee at the Ramoji Film City, a report by the Times of India (TOI) said.

On Thursday, Shah and his colleague, Vistex's President Vishwanath Raju Datla were being lowered from an iron cage with the help of ropes and pulleys onto the dais to kickstart the celebrations,told a company official toTOI.

Shah is dead, and Datla battling for life

The official said that suddenly, one of the wires attached to the cage snapped, and both the men plunged over 15 feet and landed on the concrete dais. They were rushed to a local hospital and later to a corporate hospital where their condition deteriorated.

Shah, 56, died of his injuries,while Datla was battling for his life, the report added. Speaking to the publication, a police official said a rolling machine was pulling the cage when the strings broke, adding the compartment collapsed at great speed.

The report also said that a case was registered under sections 304A and 336 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Those booked included the management of Ramoji Film City, its senior event manager, and the chief manager of security.

Who was Sanjay Shah?

Sanjay Shah was the founder, CEO, and chief architect of Vistex which specialises in revenue management solutions.According to his LinkedIn profile, Shah completed his Masters in Business Administration (MBA) in 1989 from Lehigh University's College of Business.

Vistex was founded in 1999 and currently has 20 offices across the world and more than 2,000 employees. Some of the company's clients include Heinz, Nvidia, Whirlpool, and Sony.

(With inputs from agencies)