The
Supreme Court on Thursday appointed former Chief Justice of India D Y
Chandrachud as mediator in the dispute between two members of the late
industrialist Sunjay Kapur’s family over the family trust.
The
trust is named after Sunjay Kapur’s 80-year-old mother, Rani Kapur, who is one
of the disputants. The other disputant is Priya Kapur, who was married to
Sunjay Kapur when he died last year.
A
Bench of Justice J B Pardiwala and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan passed the order after
all sides consented to mediation. The court also cautioned the parties against
issuing public statements or discussing the matter on social media.
“It’s
a family dispute; let it be confined among the family only. It should not be a
source of entertainment,” the Bench observed during the proceedings.
The
litigation previously attracted judicial criticism over the manner in which the
dispute unfolded in public.
During
earlier proceedings before the Delhi High Court, Justice Mini Pushkarna had
observed that “a lot of dirty linen was being washed in the open” while urging
the parties to explore mediation and resolve the matter amicably.
While
dictating the order, the Supreme Court said mediation would be limited to
disputes among family members and stressed that all parties must participate
constructively.
“This
being a family affair, the endeavour on their part should be to get the
disputes resolved at the earliest,” the court said.
The
Bench stated it would consider the matter further after receiving a preliminary
report from the mediator. The case is scheduled to be taken up again in August.
The
litigation centres on the constitution and management of the Rani Kapur Family
Trust, which, Rani Kapur has alleged, was fraudulently created to deprive her
of her estate and control of entities within the Sona group.
In
her suit, Rani Kapur has claimed that after she had a stroke in 2017, her late
son and his wife took advantage of the position. According to her allegations,
assets were transferred to the trust without her approval, and she was
persuaded to sign documents, including blank papers, on the grounds that they
were administrative formalities.