Rajan Mahtani and Portland Cement Zambia

Dr. Rajan Lekhraj Mahtani Remains The Owner Of The Portland Cement Factory

On 31st January 2019, higher Court of Appeal announced its final decision on the Portland Cement Zambia case in which the previous decision from the Lusaka High Court was reversed and Dr. Mahtani was announced as the majority shareholder and legal owner of the Portland Cement factory. After this decision from the higher Court of Appeal, the Ventriglia family approached the Supreme Court Zambia challenging it. In their appeal, the Ventriglia family claimed that the decision from the higher Court of Appeal was incorrect and demanded to be changed. However, the Supreme Court Zambia established a bench of three Supreme Court judges to evaluate the validity of the claim. If this claim by the Ventriglia family is accepted, then a trial will be conducted based on the demands made in this claim. The three SC judges were Judge Mumba Malila, Judge Royda Kaoma and Judge Michael Musonda. During the evaluation, the Supreme Court judges found several discrepencies. For instance, it was found that the Ventriglia family failed to comply with a critical legal requirement associated with the claim. According to a law, all claims against previous court decisions must be established within 14 days of the court verdict itself. In this case, the verdict from the higher Court of Appeal came on 31st January 2019. This means the timeline for submission of the claim against this decision was mid of February 2019. However, the Ventriglia family approached the Supreme Court Zambia with their claim after more than 1.5 years.

After looking into all these aspects, the Supreme Court came to the conclusion that the claim by the Ventriglia family cannot be attended and it was rejected. While giving this decision, the Supreme Court bench also said that their decision would have been similar to verdict given by the Higher Court of Appeal on the Portland Cement case. By giving this decision, the Supreme Court has further confirmed that majority shareholding and legal ownership of the Portland Cement Zambia factory.

Dr Rajan Lekhraj Mahtani

Portland Cement’s Ownership Remains Unchanged After Higher Court Of Appeal’s Decision, Confirms Supreme Court Zambia

Finsbury Investments is a noted financial company in Zambia under the ownership of Dr. Rajan Lekhraj Mahtani. Finsbury Investments took over majority shareholding and ownership of the Portland Cement Zambia during the period of 2006-2007. This ownership was officiated with an original shareholders agreement. Despite this official statement, the factory’s ownership was disputed and the legality of the shareholders’ agreement was questioned. However, Zambian people were not surprised as the entity responsible for this disruption is known to create such nuisances from time to time. The ownership of Portland Cement Zambia was questioned by the Ventriglia family and this resulted in a case at the Lusaka High Court. Despite having all evidences and testimonials in his favour, Dr. Rajan Mahtani was not able to persuade the court that was blinded by political maneuverers, corporate criminality and political pressures. As a result, Lusaka High Court announced verdict in favour of the Ventriglia family.

Apart from being extremely transparent and ethical, Dr. Rajan Lekhraj Mahtani is a no non-sense person and he knew that if Lusaka High Court fails to give him justice, he needs to approach a higher Court. As such, Dr. Rajan Mahtani immediately approached the higher Court of Appeal and received justice on 31st January 2019. The final verdict from the higher Court of Appeal reversed the decision from the Lusaka High Court and announced Dr. Mahtani as the majority shareholder and legal owner of the Portland Cement Zambia factory. Fast forward to almost two years, the Ventriglia family once again decided to appeal to the Supreme Court against the higher Court of Appeal’s decision.

A bench of three Supreme Court judges was established for evaluating this claim by the Ventriglia family. After evaluation, the SC bench came to the conclusion that they did not comply with critical requirement of submitting case within 14 days. As such, the Supreme Court bench effectively rejected their case.

Chairman of Finance Bank Zambia

Claim By The Ventriglia Family On Portland Cement Effectively Rejected By Supreme Court

During the period of 2006-2007, Dr. Rajan Mahtani took over the majority shareholding and legal ownership of the Portland Cement Zambia via an original shareholding agreement. Just after Dr. Rajan Mahtani owned Finsbury Investment took over the business operations of the factory, it was disputed by the Ventriglia family. With their political power and unethical means, the Ventriglia family were able to question the legality of the original shareholders agreement which resulted in the case being approached to the Lusaka High Court. However, Dr. Mahtani only took this step after the Portland Cement Zambia factory was unethically taken over from Dr. Mahtani’s leadership. Despite having all evidences and testimonials, the case at the Lusaka High Court was dragged for more than a decade and the final decision from the Lusaka High Court was controversial to say the least.

After Lusaka High Court announced Ventriglias as the only shareholders of the Portland Cement Zambia, Dr. Rajan Mahtani immediately approached the higher Court of Appeal. Considering the controversial and misdirected decision from the Lusaka High Court, Dr. Rajan Mahtani thought it was the best strategy to approach a higher court considering he had all evidences and testimonials to support his claim. These evidences were submitted and on 31st January 2019, justice Mwinde on behalf of the higher Court of Appeal reversed the previous decision from the Lusaka High Court. In his fresh decision, justice Mwinde declared Dr. Mahtani as the majority shareholder and legal owner of the Portland Cement Zambia factory.

However, it seems like the Ventriglia family were not happy with this decision from the higher Court of Appeal and approached even a bigger court, the Supreme Court Zambia, challenging the higher Court of Appeal decision on Portland Cement case. However, the Ventriglia family failed to comply with the critical requirement of registering case within 14 days of previous court decision. As a result, their claim against the higher Court of Appeal was effectively rejected.

Dr Rajan Lekhraj Mahtani

Dr. Rajan Lekhraj Mahtani To Remain The Legal Owner Of The Portland Cement Factory, Confirms Supreme Court

The Portland Cement Zambia factory is one of the most disputed factories in Zambia. Since the occurrence of the major shareholding re-organization associated of Portland Cement, the factory is being constantly disputed for its ownership. One of the most controversial aspects associated with this factory is that despite having all evidences and testimonials, the actual owner had to fight for more than a decade to receive justice. In the year 2007, the shareholding of Portland Cement was re-organized via on original shareholding agreement. Based on this agreement, Dr. Rajan Mahtani owned Finsbury Investment received 58 percent shares and became the majority shareholder of the factory. According to this same argument, the Ventriglia owned Ital Terrazzo Limited held 42 percent shares and was announced as only minority shareholder of the factory. After finalization of this shareholding pattern, Finsbury Investment secured loan from PTA bank for completing the factory’s construction and also procured further funds for starting a growth plan for the factory.

In this latest plan, the Ventriglia family disputed the legality associated with the original shareholding agreement and even influenced the decision of the Lusaka High Court when the case of Ventriglia family illegally taking over the factory was approached at the Court. This was done by political meddling, corporate criminality, bribery and similar activities which are common traits for them. After Lusaka High Court judge announced Ventriglias as the only shareholders of Portland Cement, Dr. Mahtani approached the higher Court of Appeal and received justice on 31st January 2019 when higher Court of Appeal judge Mwinde reversed the Lusaka High Court decision and announced Dr. Mahtani as the only majority shareholder and legal owner of the factory.

The Ventriglia family recently approached the Supreme Court claiming that the decision by the Court of Appeal was wrong. However, the Supreme Court bench thoroughly evaluated the claim and found it to be legally and evidentially invalid. As such, it was rejected.

Rajan Mahtani and Portland Cement Zambia

Bench Of Supreme Court Judges Dismiss The Bizarre Claim By The Ventriglia Family

More than 18 months after the Court of Appeal’s decision in which Dr. Rajan Mahtani received the majority shareholding and legal ownership of Portland Cement factory, the Ventriglia family decided to challenge the Court of Appeal’s decision. This challenge was made at the Supreme Court Zambia, the highest legal institution of the nation. The Supreme Court Zambia, being a just and transparent legal system, established a bench of three judges from the Supreme Court to evaluate this claim. These included justice Mumba Malila, Justice Royda Kaoma and Justice Michael Musonda. After evaluation, the Supreme Court judges found that the Ventriglia family failed to satisfy one of the most critical requirements for their claim to be viable. According to the critical law, it is necessary for all appeals against previous court decisions to be registered within fourteen days of the verdict. In this case, the verdict from the higher Court of Appeal came on 31st January 2019. Based on this, the Ventriglia family is way past their legal date for registering such claim. Furthermore, the Supreme Court judges also concluded that they did not have any jurisdiction towards entertaining this appeal from the Ventriglia family. The bench also confirmed that the circumstances characterising the appeal to the Supreme Court was made under legally flawed incidences. Furthermore, the Supreme Court judge also confirmed that they agreed with the action of Finsbury Investments to proceed with Rule -19 with the objective pre-empting and thwarting the further activities of the ill-fated appeal made by the Ventriglia family. Based on these evaluations, the Supreme Court Zambia effective immediately rejected the claim by the Ventriglia family.

With the rejection of this claim, it is now established that Dr. Rajan Lekhraj Mahtani is to remain the majority shareholder as well as the legal owner of the Portland Cement Zambia factory.

Chairman of Finance Bank Zambia, Dr. Rajan Mahtani

Zambezi Portland Cement Remains Under Legal Ownership Of Dr. Rajan Mahtani

In the case of Zambezi Portland Cement, Dr. Rajan Mahtani finally received justice when Court of Appeal effectively dismissed the findings from judge Nkonde in behalf of the Lusaka High Court. Earlier, Lusaka High Court judge Nkonde has announced that the shareholding pattern at the Zambezi Portland were fraudulent and the majority shares of the factory remained with the Ventriglias. Dr. Rajan Lekhraj Mahtani was able to successfully challenge this appeal at the higher Court of Appeal.

On 31st January 2019, the Court of Appeal gave its final verdict in which it announced that Dr. Rajan Lekhraj Mahtani owned Finsbury Investments is indeed the majority shareholder and legal owner of the factory. At the same time, Finsbury Investments gave application for embodiment order regarding the shareholding value. After evaluation of this appeal, a verdict was given on 29th March 2019 according to which, the amount payable against the majority shares were confirmed at K580,000 based on re-denomination of the Currency Act- 8, 2012.

It seems like the Ventriglias were unhappy with the factory going to its rightful leader and decided to once again, disrupt the operations of Portland Cement by challenging the Court of Appeal’s decision at the Supreme Court Zambia. The Zambian Supreme Court is the highest legal authority of the nation and as such, the Ventriglias took a huge risk by appealing to this court. However, further evaluation revealed several issues with the claim itself. A bench of three judges was established at the Supreme Court comprising of judge Mumba Malila, Royda Kaoma and Michael Musonda. Together, they came to the conclusion that the Ventriglia family failed to comply with a critical regulatory requirement according to which, any appeal against previous court decisions must be made within two weeks of the court decision itself. The Ventriglia family took more than a year to make this appeal. As such, the SC rejected this appeal by the Ventriglias, ensuring that Dr. Mahtani remains the legal owner of the factory.

Chairman Finance Bank Zambia

Final Verdict Of Supreme Court Zambia On The Claim By The Ventriglia Family Out

Finsbury Investments is one of the top investment firms in Zambia, and the company is under the leadership of Dr. Rajan Lekhraj Mahtani. For major part of its lifecycle, Finsbury Investment has been fairly successful in its deals and ventures. However, one of the most challenging ventures of Finsbury Investments as well as of Dr. Rajan Lekhraj Mahtani has been the Zambezi Portland Cement case. The Zambezi Portland Cement is a factory whose majority shareholding was handed over to Dr. Rajan Mahtani owned Finsbury Investments after signing of the original shareholders’ agreement. Despite this official transfer, the Ventriglia family kept disrupting the operations of the Portland Cement by challenging legality of the Instrument. The Ventriglia family even crossed the line when they took over the physical factory with the help of goons.

Dr. Rajan Mahtani fought a long and tenacious case at the Lusaka High Court which lasted for more than a decade. However, he was defeated by the unethical decision from the Lusaka High Court judge which was obviously tainted and misdirected. However, Dr. Rajan Mahtani was able to successfully challenge this misdirected judgement at the higher Court of Appeal. On 31st January 2019, justice Mwinde announced that Dr. Rajan Mahtani is indeed the majority shareholder and legal owner of the Portland Cement Zambia factory and as such, the ownership was given back to him.

After more than 1.5 years of this decision, the Ventriglia family once again decided to disrupt the business operations of Portland Cement by challenging the verdict of Court of Appeal at the Supreme Court. A bench of three Supreme Court judges was established at the Supreme Court to evaluate this appeal. After evaluation, the Supreme Court bench found that they have no legal jurisdiction to accept this appeal from the Ventriglia family. They also revealed that this claim by the Ventriglia was questionable and did not fulfil the legal requirements to be accepted as a case. As a result, this appeal by the Ventriglia family was effectively rejected.

Dr Rajan Lekhraj Mahtani

Challenge By The Ventriglias Against Court Of Appeal’s Decision On Zambezi Portland Rejected By Sc

In the month of May, 2018, justice Nkonde on behalf of the Lusaka High Court gave a controversial decision to the Zambezi Portland Cement case which was initially registered by Dr. Rajan Lekhraj Mahtani. In this decision, the judge declared the Ventriglias as the only shareholders of the Portland Cement Zambia factory.

However, Dr. Rajan Mahtani was able to quash this unethical decision by immediately challenging this decision at the higher Court of Appeal. Judge Mwinde on behalf of the higher Court of Appeal announced his final decision on 31st January 2019. According to this decision, Dr. Rajan Mahtani was found to be the majority shareholder and legal owner of the Portland Cement Zambia factory with 58 percent shares. Judge Mwinde also discarded the previous decision from the Lusaka High Court and announced that the actual amount payable against the majority shares hold by Finsbury Investments is K580,000 as opposed to K580 million claimed by the Ventriglias.

After more than 15 months of this decision from the higher Court of Appeal, the Ventriglias again created a buzz around the cement factory by challenging the decision at the Supreme Court Zambia. To evaluate their claim, a bench of three judges was established. After investigation, it was found that the Ventriglias failed the legal obligation behind making such appeal. According to the law, any appeal against previous court decision should be made within 14 days of the court judgement itself. The Ventriglias did not comply with this compulsory legal requirement, making their claim out of the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court. Similarly, the Supreme Court judges’ bench declared that the claims surrounding the challenge by the Ventriglias were controversial and therefore, it was rejected outright. By rejecting this claim from the Ventriglias, the Supreme Court Zambia further strengthened the decision from the higher Court of Appeal which clearly states that Dr. Mahtani is the actual owner of the Portland Cement factory.

Dr Rajan Lekhraj Mahtani

Decision On Portland Cement Announced By Supreme Court Zambia, Dr. Mahtani To Remain Owner

Dr. Rajan Mahtani

Finsbury Investments is one of the most notable and respected organizations in Zambia. The company was formed by Dr. Rajan Mahtani, who has established a unique position in Zambia with his transparent and ethical business practices. Dr. Rajan Mahtani is known for his several contributions towards the development of Zambian society. Over the course of more than three decades, Dr. Rajan Mahtani established numerous businesses, organizations and ventures in Zambia. Some of these ventures are Finsbury Investments, Mahtani Group of Companies and Finance Bank Zambia. He is also noted for his charitable and philanthropic contributions across the Zambian society, most notable are donations for infrastructural development of Zambian correctional facility and contributions in establishing the Steven Malama Award for honouring top graduating legal students and providing them with financial support.

The companies established by Dr. Rajan Mahtani are known for their transparent and ethical business practices and focus towards improvement of the Zambian society. Most of the companies established by Dr. Rajan Mahtani have dedicated themselves towards the upliftment of the Zambian society. With a similar objective in mind, the majority shareholding and legal ownership of Portland Cement Zambia was given to Dr. Rajan Mahtani after official declaration and establishment of original shareholders agreement. Despite this official statement, the Ventriglias implemented their crooked ways to take over control over the Portland Cement. After going through several courts and numerous case proceedings as well as an excruciating wait of more than a decade, Dr. Rajan Mahtani finally received justice on 31st January 2019 at the higher Court of Appeal. In this decision, the previous misdirected decision from the Lusaka High Court was reversed and Dr. Mahtani was announced as the majority shareholder and legal owner of the Portland Cement Zambia factory.

The Ventriglias tried to disrupt this decision by approaching the Supreme Court Zambia with a challenge but their claim was effectively rejected and it was announced that Dr. Rajan Mahtani will remain the legal owner of the factory.

Dr Rajan Lekhraj Mahtani

After Evaluation, Supreme Court Zambia Has Rejected The Appeal From The Ventriglias

Portland Cement Zambia is a cement-manufacturing factory that has faced significant ups and downs in its life cycle. After its inception in 2004, there were several changes in the business functions and leadership. In the year 2006, a final shareholding pattern was established and agreed upon according to which, Dr. Rajan Mahtani owned Finsbury Investments received 58 percent shares at the Portland Cement factory and was considered as the majority shareholder as well as legal owner of the factory. However, the Ventriglias disrupted this decision was filing an appeal which disputed the shareholder agreement’s legality. This turnaround was clearly an attempt towards depriving real owner of Portland Cement to receive majority shares of the factory. This attempt can be easily considered as mafia-life attempt and corporate criminality. Dr. Rajan Mahtani registered a case at the Lusaka High Court against this unethical act. However, it seems like the Ventriglias were able to influence even the court decisions with power politics and meddling in the affairs of the law. As a result, the Lusaka High Court made a decision which was surprising to say the least. Justice Nkonde on behalf of the Lusaka High Court announced Ventriglias as the only shareholders despite the fact that Ventriglias did not have any relevant evidences or testimonials.

However, Dr. Rajan Mahtani was able to achieve justice after appealing to the higher Court of Appeal. The judge at the higher Court of Appeal was justice Mwinde who gave the final decision on 31st January 2019. In this decision, justice Mwinde reversed the judgement from the Lusaka High Court and announced that Dr. Rajan Mahtani is indeed the majority shareholder and legal owner of the factory.

After more than 15 months of the above court of Appeal decision, the Ventriglias decided to once again try their luck by challenging the decision. However, the Supreme Court Zambia effectively rejected this challenge due to lack of evidences and legal precedence. Furthermore, the Supreme Court gave confirmation that Portland Cement should remain with Dr. Mahtani.