The war of words between Dr Vijaypat Singhania, chairman emeritus of the Raymond Group, and family of his estranged son, Madhupati, got uglier with Madhupati and his children filing affidavits opposing the claims made by the senior Singhania.
The war of words between Dr Vijaypat Singhania, chairman emeritus of the Raymond Group, and family of his estranged son, Madhupati, got uglier with Madhupati and his children filing affidavits opposing the claims made by the senior Singhania.
The affidavits were filed in the proceedings before the Bombay high court, which is hearing a suit filed by Madhupati's four children – Ananya, 29, Rasaalika, 26, Tarini, 20, and Raivathari, 18 – in February 2015, seeking annulment of the family agreement of December 30, 1998. It was signed between their parents – Madhupati and Anuradha – and Dr Singhania, whereby the parents had given up their and the children' rights in the ancestral properties.
The grandchildren have sought annulment of the agreement stating that it was prima facie illegal as they have a right in the ancestral property by birth. They have further claimed that the agreement is invalid as it deals with various properties and is yet an unregistered document.
The siblings have filed a rejoinder affidavit through their constituted attorney, Devkumar Aggarwal, denying that there was delay in filing of the suit. They said they filed the suit as soon as they learnt about the family agreement in October 2014 and were allowed access to a copy in November last year. According to the affidavit, Madhupati sent them an email informing them about the agreement.
They have also questioned Dr Singhania's claim that the agreement was singed for their (siblings) interest. The affidavit filed by Dr Singhania had claimed that the agreement was signed in the interest of "family peace, harmony and to avoid escalation of family disputes, differences and tensions which had led to an unconducive environment" due to differences between him (Dr Singhania) and Madhupati and his wife.
They have further alleged that Dr Singhania was shedding assets in order to deny them rights to property that they claim is deservedly theirs. The affidavit alleges that Dr Singhania is responsible for "gifting away" his entire stake in the conglomerate Raymonds Ltd., which he took over in 1980.
The affidavit alleges that ownership, held indirectly through 24,290 shares of JK Investors and 9,996 shares of Smart Investments Pvt Ltd, amounting to over a third of the flagship company, were handed over to Dr Singhania's younger son Gautam. This share of the company is considered to be worth a few hundred crore rupees.
The affidavit has pointed out an intimation issued by Dr Singhania to the Bombay Stock Exchange on February 9, 2015, delineating the nature of the transfer of shares. This was done a few days after the suit was filed and less than a month after Madhupati had sent a notice to his father revoking a power of attorney signed in Dr Singhania's favour.
The siblings filed their affidavit a day after their father, Madhupati, filed an affidavit claiming that Dr Singhania sidelined him in the family-run businesses for siding with his mother who was not treated with the love and respect due to her.
However, Madhupati's affidavit does not provide any details of how Dr Singhania ill-treated his wife, Asha Devi.
Madhupati has said that he signed the agreement gifting away his rights to the family properties only after his father began promoting Gautam over him.
Countering Dr Singhania's contention that Madhupati is trying to gain a backdoor entry into the family businesses, including flagship Raymond India, Madhupati has said that in these years, the value of the company has actually declined. "It is a matter of public record that Raymond group was worth Rs2,111 crore in 1998 and in the year 2013 it slipped to Rs1,600 crore," he has said.
He has further claimed that despite the losses suffered by group companies, Dr Singhania's and Gautam's personal wealth have risen to over Rs8,500 crore.
The affidavit claims that Madhupati took the group to new heights when he was in-charge.
Madhupati has also refuted Dr Singhania's claim that all his wealth is his own and none of it could be described as ancestral property and thus his grandchildren could have no claim over it. Madhupati has given details of how the family business evolved since 1880 and cites a dissolution deed signed in 1987 between the three branches of the Singhania family — Kanpur, Calcutta (now Kolkata) and Mumbai — to show how everything, including Raymond, is an ancestral property.
The matter is likely to come up for hearing on May 8.
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