NEW DELHI (AFP) - An Indian court on Wednesday (Jan 20) convicted a millionaire businessman of murder for ramming his sports utility vehicle into a security guard who was slow in opening the gate, the prosecution lawyer said.

Muhammad Nisham, 39, was arrested last January after he pinned the guard against a wall with his SUV over a delay in opening the gate of his apartment complex in the southern state of Kerala.

The 50-year-old guard, Mr Chandarabose, was left with multiple injuries and died after suffering a cardiac arrest in the hospital where he was receiving treatment.

"It was a short hearing and the court found the accused, Nisham, guilty of murder," public prosecutor Udaya Bhanu told AFP by phone.

"We have argued for the maximum penalty - death," said Mr Bhanu.

Sentencing takes place on Thursday.

The court heard that Nisham pursued the guard into the complex with his Hummer and squeezed him against a wall before getting out and beating him with an iron rod.

It is not the first time Nisham has made the headlines.

He faces a separate criminal case for allowing his nine-year-old son to drive a Ferrari in 2013, which caused outrage after he uploaded a video onto YouTube.

Nisham made his fortune from beedis, the hugely popular hand-rolled Indian cigarette packed with tobacco leaves, and also owns hotel and jewellery businesses in the Middle East.

He reportedly has a passion for luxury cars and owns a large fleet of them.