Sunjay Kapur inheritance war: Bank account emptied, claim children; judge says NDA demand ‘problematic’ — What we know

Sunjay Kapur inheritence war: The money that Sunjay Kapur left in the bank account that has been disclosed in the late businessman's purported will has been “wiped off”, his ex-wife Karisma Kapur's children have claimed amid an ongoing inheritance battle at the Delhi High Court.

Karisma Kapoor's children Samaira Kapur and Kiaan Raj Kapur have challenged their father Sunjay Kapur's purported will and sought shares in his assets. The claims were made on Thursday when the court was hearing a plea of Kapur's widow Priya Sachdev.

During the hearing, the Delhi HC questioned Priya Sachdev's appeal for Samaira, Kiaan, and Sunjay Kapur's mother Rani Kapur to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) to reveal the businessman's assets.

The court remarked that filing the list of personal assets and liabilities of late Sunjay Kapur in a sealed cover may be "problematic" since his two children with former wife and actor Karisma Kapoor have a "right to question the assets disclosed."

Justice Jyoti Singh made the observation as Priya Sachdev moved the appeal that also demanded the documents be filed in a sealed cover with the parties to be bound by confidentiality, or in the alternative, constitution of Confidentiality Club.

“Allowing the application may be problematic for the simple reason that as the alleged beneficiary of the estate, they (Karisma's children Samaira Kapur and Kiaan Raj Kapur) have a right to question the assets disclosed. So, tomorrow if they have to verify and go about asking what has happened, if they are bound by this confidentiality club, how will they ever defend their case,” the judge asked.

Why does Priya Sachdev want an NDA?

Priya Sachdev's application came after the Delhi HC's September 10 order directing her to file a comprehensive statement of Sanjay Kapur's assets and liabilities as of June 12.

She insisted the requirement was necessary, citing media attention as well as the question of cyber security. Her counsel said she was not “shying away” from showing the details to the plaintiffs.

However, Samaira and Kiaan's lawyer argued that the bank accounts mentioned in the will have been wiped out.

“Our information is, bank (accounts) has been wiped off… For properties, the world should know… How will I confirm the transactions (if sealed cover submission and confidentiality clause is ordered for)?” the children's counsel said.

While seeking confidentiality, Priya's lawyer claimed that it was a matter of security.

“There are bank details, other financial details. Why should the public have someone's bank account number?” the counsel asked, claiming that there were "press conferences" being held after the hearing.

The court will resume the hearing on the matter on Friday.