The legal battle over the inheritance of the late industrialist Sunjay Kapur intensified recently in the Delhi High Court. The court expressed skepticism about the validity of the Will submitted by his widow, Priya Kapur. Senior advocate Rajiv Nayar, who represented Priya, tried to defend the Will, but the judges pointed out multiple inconsistencies, errors in writing, and a lack of evidence proving the Will’s connection to Sunjay.
Nayar claimed that the mistakes in the Will—like referring to Sunjay incorrectly and spelling names wrong—came from a “template” based on his mother’s Will. However, the judges questioned why a wealthy individual would use an outdated template without correcting obvious personal details.
The Will’s shortcomings were also highlighted, such as:
– No detailed list of Sunjay’s significant assets.
– No mention of his first two children, Samaira and Kiaan.
– Only Priya and her kids, Safira and Azarius, are named as beneficiaries.
Another senior advocate, Mahesh Jethmalani, suggested that this selective naming indicated the Will might favor one party unfairly.
Concerns were raised over a misspelled name for Priya’s son, Azarius, which Nayar attributed to the previous template. Critics pointed out that it’s odd for parents to rely on a grandmother’s Will to spell their child’s name correctly.
A significant procedural issue noted was the absence of notarization. While Rani Kapur’s Will was notarized, Sunjay’s Will lacked this essential step, even though it involved a much larger estate. Nayar mentioned that an employee named Nitin Sharma drafted the Will, but his name was missing from both Priya’s response and Nitin’s affidavit, which cast further doubt on its authenticity.
The court remarked that no document has been presented showing that Sunjay was involved in or approved the Will. There were no emails, messages, or notes that linked him to the drafting process. Despite having a history of dealing with legal documents, Sunjay did not follow formal procedures for this Will.
Compounding the issues, the defense referenced a legal case, but the court clarified that it was resolved after a full trial, unlike the current situation, which is still in the early stages.
Concerns about the Will’s origins were also raised, as forensic analysis suggested it was created on a device not associated with Sunjay. Nayar’s claim that Nitin Sharma saved the document did not explain the lack of any evidence connecting the Will to Sunjay.
As the case returns to court, Priya’s legal team faces mounting pressure to clarify not just the typographical errors but the more significant question of whether Sunjay Kapur had any role in creating or approving the Will.
