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Muhammed Nisham charged with murder after ramming his SUV into his guard (The car pictured is not the one used by Nisham) Geoff Robins/AFP

An Indian tobacco tycoon has been charged with murder after pinning a security guard against a wall with his SUV and then beating the man with an iron rod - the victim died later in hospital from heart failure.

Multi-millionaire Muhammad Nisham rammed into the man, known only as Chandrabose, because he did not open the gate to an apartment complex quickly enough.

Nisham was arrested in January after the incident at the apartment complex in India's southern Kerala state, the Indian Express reported.

Chandrabose sustained severe injuries and despite undergoing several operations, he died of cardiac arrest after spending two weeks in a hospital on life support.

"His heart had not been functioning properly following the impact of the internal injuries", the Press Trust of India news agency said.

Nisham is alleged to have previously locked a woman sub-inspector inside his car and on a separate occasion was found driving under the influence of alcohol.

He is also facing another criminal case after he allowed his nine-year-old son to drive a Ferrari in 2013 and uploaded the video to social media.

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