New Delhi : The Supreme Court on Monday urged mediation in the ongoing dispute over the estate of late industrialist Sunjay Kapur. Hearing her plea, a bench led by Justice J B Pardiwala observed, “If this litigation has started at 80 this is not the age to fight,” and encouraged all parties to resolve the matter amicably instead of engaging in a prolonged legal battle.
The case pertains to a bitter inheritance dispute within the Sona Group family, with Rani Kapur challenging the creation and functioning of a family trust that she claims has stripped her of her assets. She has moved the apex court against a Delhi High Court order that refused to grant her interim protection and declined to preserve the estate pending adjudication. Rani Kapur has alleged that she has been divested of her entire legacy – including her estate, residence and other movable and immovable assets – and sought urgent safeguards against their possible diversion.
It would be a long drawn litigation. The plaintiff is 80 years of age. It will be in the interest of parties if they go for mediation and decide the issue peacefully, the bench observed. While the court said it would hear the matter on merits, it made clear that it would first attempt to push the parties towards a negotiated settlement. “We shall hear the matter on merits; however, we shall encourage mediation,” the bench added.
She claimed that after suffering a stroke in 2017, she was made to sign documents – including blank papers – under the pretext of administrative requirements. According to her, her late son Sunjay Kapur and his wife Priya Kapur took advantage of her medical condition to shift ownership of assets into the trust.
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