'Mahabharat will look small': SC on Sunjay Kapur family's ₹30,000 crore feud

THe sublime margaret court on tues likened the volatile ₹30,000-crore Kapur fellowship estate battle to the Mahabharat, with Justice J B Pardiwala remarking that the epic war would “look very small” compared to the feud unfolding before the court. The sharp observation came as the apex court heard a fresh plea by Rani Kapur, mother of late industrialist Sunjay Kapur, seeking to block moves linked to the disputed RK Family Trust even as mediation proceedings led by former CJI DY Chandrachud remain underway.The observation was made on May 12 by a bench led by Justice J B Pardiwala while hearing a fresh plea filed by Rani Kapur, the 80-year-old mother of Sunjay Kapur, in the ongoing dispute involving the RK Family Trust and other family members.“We have entered into an arena. Mahabharat will look very small. We will look into it,” Justice Pardiwala remarked during the hearing, as lawyers outlined new allegations linked to the functioning of the family trust and a proposed company board meeting.The court listed the matter for further hearing on May 14.The latest round of litigation comes despite the Supreme Court having, only days earlier on May 7, appointed former Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud as mediator to help resolve the increasingly complex feud between Rani Kapur and Priya Sachdev Kapur, the third wife of the late businessman.Fresh plea over trust and board meetingIn her new application before the apex court, Rani Kapur sought directions restraining Priya Sachdev Kapur and certain other respondents from interfering with the functioning of the “RK Family Trust” until the mediation proceedings conclude.She also sought a stay on a board meeting scheduled for May 18 pursuant to a notice issued by Raghuvanshi Investment Private Limited, which allegedly controls a substantial portion of the disputed estate. According to the plea, the proposed meeting was aimed at appointing additional directors to the board.Counsel appearing for Rani Kapur told the court that the developments could alter the balance of control within the family-linked entities even as mediation proceedings are underway. The Supreme Court bench then made the “Mahabharat” observation while acknowledging the intensity and scale of the conflict that has engulfed the Kapur family since Sunjay Kapur’s death last year.DY Chandrachud appointed mediatorOn May 7, the Supreme Court formally referred the dispute to mediation and appointed former CJI DY Chandrachud to oversee the process after all parties agreed to explore a negotiated settlement.A bench comprising Justices J B Pardiwala and Ujjal Bhuyan had stressed that the conflict was essentially a “family dispute” and should remain confined within the family rather than turning into a public spectacle.“It is a family dispute. Let it be confined among the family only. It should not be a source of entertainment,” the bench had observed.The court directed all parties to participate in the mediation proceedings “with an open mind” and cautioned them against making public statements or discussing the case on social media.The judges also noted that if mediation failed, the matter could become a “long drawn litigation”.Dispute over RK Family TrustAt the centre of the legal battle is the RK Family Trust, which Rani Kapur has alleged was created through “forged, fabricated and fraudulent” documents without her knowledge.In her suit, she claimed she was the sole beneficiary of the estate of her late husband Surinder Kapur, founder of the Sona Group, and alleged that a “systematic fraud” resulted in her assets being transferred into the trust structure.According to the plea, Sunjay Kapur never informed her that she had allegedly been divested of rights over family assets and never provided her with a copy of the trust documents during his lifetime. Rani Kapur further alleged that Priya Kapur and others acted in collusion with Sunjay Kapur to move assets into the trust through “a complex web of illegal transactions”.She has sought a declaration that the trust is null and void and requested that the court restrain the respondents from acting in furtherance of the trust. ₹30,000 crore estate battleThe dispute has become one of the most closely watched inheritance battles involving a prominent Indian business family.Sunjay Kapur, former chairman of auto components maker Sona Comstar, died in June 2025 after reportedly suffering a cardiac arrest during a polo match in England.Following his death, multiple family members approached courts over claims to his vast estate, estimated in some reports at nearly ₹30,000 crore.The dispute widened after Priya Sachdev Kapur allegedly presented a will said to have been executed by Sunjay Kapur, triggering objections from his children Samaira and Kiaan, who challenged the authenticity of the document before the Delhi High Court.The children, represented through their mother and actor Karisma Kapoor, sought a share in the estate and questioned why the will surfaced only after Sunjay Kapur’s death.Court filings also referred to disputes over beneficiary ownership forms, trust-controlled holdings and alleged transfers of shares linked to Sona Comstar entities.Rani Kapur separately claimed assets worth around ₹10,000 crore and alleged that she had been made to sign documents without full knowledge of their implications.Court seeks resolutionDespite the increasingly adversarial proceedings, the Supreme Court has repeatedly emphasised the need for a peaceful resolution through mediation.While appointing Chandrachud as mediator, the bench said the endeavour of all parties should be to “get the dispute resolved at the earliest and put an end to the entire matter”.However, the fresh application moved by Rani Kapur and the court’s dramatic “Mahabharat” remark suggest that tensions within the Kapur family remain high even as mediation efforts begin.