The Supreme Court on Thursday asked late industrialist Sunjay Kapur’s mother Rani Kapur and his wife Priya Kapur to settle their dispute in view of the advancing age of Rani Kapur (80).
A Bench of Justices JB Pardiwala and Ujjal Bhuyan gave a philosophical advice to the two sides embroiled in a dispute over the family trust.
“We all came with empty hands and we have to go with empty hands. All we carry is our souls. There has to be a will to settle the matter. Don’t go before the mediator with a heavy heart just because court has pushed us. Each one of you try,” the Bench told the parties.
While refusing to halt a board meeting of Raghuvanshi Investment Private Limited (RIPL) which owns a major part of the disputed estate of Sunjay Kapur, the top court ordered that agenda items for appointment of two independent directors and change of signatory for bank accounts shall not be discussed in the meeting.
The Bench — which had on May 7 appointed former CJI DY Chandrachud as a mediator in the dispute over the family trust — asked them not to do anything which may directly affect the mediation proceedings.
It will be in the interest of all parties to put an end to this entire dispute amicably, otherwise it is going to be a “long drawn battle”, it noted.
Rani Kapur, widow of late Dr Surinder Kapur, alleged that she has been divested of her legacy, estate and home through a fraudulent instrument called the RK Family Trust or Rani Kapur Family Trust.
In her suit, Rani Kapur alleged that after she suffered a stroke in 2017, her late son Sunjay Kapur and his wife Priya Kapur exploited her physical condition and her assets were transferred into the family trust without informed consent.
Now she has an interim application accusing her daughter-in-law Priya Kapur and others of attempting a “forced takeover” of the disputed estate despite the top court referring the dispute to mediation before former CJI Chandrachud.
“Why are you again here? If you all are not interested in mediation, we will not waste any time and we will hear it. Once we have sent it to mediation, we expect the parties to participate,” the Bench said on Thursday.
On behalf of Rani Kapur, senior counsel Navin Pahwa alleged that the Board meeting had been called to ensure that she was completely drowned out.
As senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing the respondents, said that the RBI wanted two independent directors by appointed by May 21, the Bench ordered that “the directives of the RBI and statutory compliances need not be insisted upon by the RBI or statutory authorities.”
It also interacted with senior advocate Mahesh Jethmalani, representing the children of actor Karisma Kapoor from her marriage with Sanjay Kapur.
“No one is in control of anything at present. Parties are before the mediators and let mediators explore all possibilities,” the Bench said and posted the matter for hearing after getting the mediator’s report.
