The Fate Of Zambezi Portland Cement Is In The Hands Of Dr. Rajan Mahtani Now, Confirms The Court of Appeal

The Court of Appeal is an important part of the legal system of any nation and the Court of Appeal of Zambia did not disappoint either. The results for the case of Zambezi Portland Cement at this court were finally out on 31^st January 2019. This decision effectively reversed the judgment at the Lusaka High Court which held that Ventriglias were only shareholders of the Zambezi Portland. However, the justice from the Court of Appeal was Justice Mwinde and he said that the judge below him was wrong in declaring Ventriglias as majority shareholders without any evidence or documents to prove. On the other hand, majority of the documents and evidences from Dr. Rajan Mahtani’s end were ignored completely.

However, things turned around on 31^st January 2019 when the judge at the Court of Appeal announced the decision in favor of Dr. Rajan Mahtani. As per the details, Dr. Mahtani owned Finsbury Investments is the majority shareholder with 58 percent shares. The Ventriglias, on the other hand, have 42 percent shares and are the minority shareholders. This decision was finalized and the legal ownership was given to Dr. Rajan Mahtani. Furthermore, the judgment given by the Court of Appeal aligns with the original Shareholders Agreement which was established in the year 2005.

As of now, the Court of Appeal announced a timeline of three months from the date of judgment for both parties during which they are required to finalize the process of sales regularization. Furthermore, the Court of Appeal also discarded all allegations of forgery by confirming the fact that the process of mechanical placement of signatures is a common practice in Zambezi Portland Cement and it is not illegal for practicing this for business transactions. The illegal act was from the Ventriglias which was unethically taking over the Portland Cement Factory which legally belonged to Dr. Rajan Mahtani.