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'My mother lost everything, will stand by...': Sunjay Kapur's sister makes explosive comments, details family's ordeal after billionaire's death
Billionaire Sunjay Kapur died of a heart attack on June 12 this year. (File)
More than two months after the death of Sona Comstar Chairman Sunjay Kapur, his sister, Mandhira Kapur, launched a scathing attack on the auto parts maker and others who allegedly harassed her 80-year-old mother Rani Kapur following the dispute over the family's share in the company founded by Surinder Kapur, the father of Mandhira and Sunjay. Why Rani Kapur claimed majority ownership in Sona Comstar
Earlier, Rani Kapur had sent a letter to Sona Comstar Board of Directors, claiming that after her son's demise, she was now the sole heir of her husband and Sona Comstar founder, Surinder Kapur, and the majority shareholder in the Sona Group, the parent company of the auto parts manufacturer.
'If the board and shareholders ignore this letter, which I am writing not only as a grieving mother but also as the head of the Kapur family and the largest shareholder of the company, it will be a clear example of mismanagement and betrayal by the company,' she wrote, adding that she has not allowed anyone to represent her in the company on her behalf.
In response, Sona Comstar sent a cease-and-desist letter to Rani Kapur, who had also claimed that she was 'forced' to sign several unknown documents supporting the nomination of her daughter-in-law, Priya Sachdev Kapur, as a non-executive director in the company.
'I think it's a little harsh on my mom to send her this letter saying she has nothing to do with the company she built. She's 80. How about just respecting the fact that her husband and she made this?' Mandhira was quoted as saying by NDTV. What did Mandhira Kapur say?
Rani had also written to SEBI, seeking postponement of the Sona Comstar's Annual General Meeting (AGM), citing the 'sudden and suspicious' death of her son Sunjay Kapur. However, despite her objections, the company approved the appointment of Priya Sachdev, the third wife of Sunjay Kapur at its July 25 AGM.
'They started with Sona. My dad worked with her. His father-in-law left everything. Our family moved to Delhi where we actually went for family therapy because we hated moving to Delhi. That's what we've been through. And today you're telling this 80-year-old woman who's lost everything that she has nothing to do with this company? I mean, think about it. Is that fair? This is the legacy that my father built. Today, we're being told we are not allowed to have this legacy,' Mandhira said, according to NDTV.
Priya Sachdev has reportedly asked Rani Kapur to move in with her in her Delhi home, but Mandhira Kapur believes the idea is 'impractical' at present as the grieving mother is still coming to terms with her grief after losing her beloved son.
'I think right now it's very tough for her even to go to that house. It is one thing that she got through after dad died, and to go back there with her son gone, it is going to be very hard for her to walk into that house. She's not emotionally ready to face the fact that she has lost her son,' Mandhira Kapur said. 'We're still in shock'
Asked about the claim made by Sona Comstar that Rani Kapur hasn't held any company shares since 2019, Mandhira Kapur called it 'absurd', asserting that his father, Surinder Kapur, 'left everything to my mother'.
'We didn't know. We had to look into this stuff. We have learned that everything was put into this so-called trust, which I don't know how. We don't know anything. We're still finding out stuff. My father left everything to my mother. My father and mother founded Sona. So to tell my mother at 80, you have nothing to do with the company she built, I think is a little absurd,' she was quoted as saying.
On her brother's demise, Mandhira said she found about postmortem details from media reports, and the family is still recovering from the shock of losing Sunjay Kapur.
'Everything has been a surprise and a shock to us. Everything we're finding out is just very upsetting. And it's like I said, we're learning everyday. We're learning a lot through the media. We're learning a lot through sources of well-wishers who are coming and telling us what is happening. So we're learning and everything has been shocking from the 12th of June. Our life has been one big shock. And, you know, it feels like a nightmare which we want to wake up from,' she said. 'Will stand by my mother'
Mandira Kapur Koirala, who runs Sona Mandira Pvt Ltd (SMPL), an auto parts maker similar to Sona Comstar, also vowed to stand by her mother in the family's battle to protect the family's inheritance and legacy from being snatched away.
'It's not anything personal against anyone. It's getting mum to a point of strength to be able to deal with the fact that we're dealing with a lot. We've lost everything right now. Mum's lost her entire world. I still have my husband, my children. But she has lost her only son and her husband and everything he built. She has nothing today,' she added. Sunjay Kapur death
Sunjay Kapur, the ex-husband of famous Bollywood actress Karisma Kapoor, died of a heart attack while playing a polo match in the United Kingdom on June 12. At first, it was believed that the 53-year-old had died due to a sudden heart attack, but later reports emerged that he had reportedly swallowed a bee by accident, and its sting caused an allergic reaction, triggering a cardiac arrest that led to his demise.
Kapur has left behind a vast business empire valued at staggering $4.7 billion (about Rs 31,000 crore) business empire. However, neither Karisma Kapoor, nor any of any of Kapur's ex-wives, sisters, or children inherited the fortune.
