In our September 21 issue of Parsiana in our "Events and Personalities” column we have carried an item "A contest of wills” referring to a dispute over the estate of Purvez Dalal. The report stated that 80-year-old Villy Avasia residing at Marine Drive had divorced Jamshed Dalal in 1959. On his death Jamshed bequeathed his estate consisting of prime properties in Bombay and stocks in blue chip companies worth Rs 200 crores to his brother Purvez. According to Avasia, Purvez in turn named her in his will as the "sole beneficiary of the estate.”
Sixty-two-year-old Manek Dara Sukhadwalla who resides in Rustom Baug alleged the will was "forged” and that Purvez had made a will making him the sole executor and mandating the entire estate should go to charities of Sukhadwalla’s choosing. The Avasias’ claim in their notice of motion that this is a "clever ploy... in a effort to disguise usurpation of the property... many ‘charitable’ organizations take donation officially and recycle the same back to the ostensible ‘donor.’” Sukhadwalla denies the charges.
Avasia and her step daughter, Shernaz Lawyer filed a notice of motion in the Bombay High Court in May this year challenging the will produced by Sukhadwalla and seeking an injunction.
Parsiana has now obtained a copy of the interim judgment delivered by Justice A. A. Sayed of the Bombay High Court on June 21, 2012.
The judge decreed "that pending the hearing and final disposal of the suit, the defendant No. 1 (Sukhadwalla), his employees, servants and agents be restrained by an order of injunction...