Mumbai: The Bombay High Court has asked brother and mother of late music composer Wajid Khan to disclose returns of the Limited Liability Company in which the deceased had an interest. Wajid, of the Sajid-Wajid fame, was admitted to hospital in February 2020 and succumbed to Covid-19 on June 1, 2020.
The HC was hearing a plea filed by Wajid’s wife Kamalrukh, 45, seeking urgent relief in respect of assets owned by him in her testamentary petition for probate of his August 2012 will. She apprehends their misappropriation by his brother Sajid, 50 and mother Razia, 71.
Earlier in April last year, the HC had directed them to disclose the late music composer’s entire estate.
During the hearing last week, Kamalrukh’s counsels, Zubin Behramkamdin and Bahraiz Irani, informed the court that its order had not been complied with. The returns of the Limited Liability Company in which the deceased had an interest has not been disclosed by the defendants, said Irani.
Birendra Saraf, counsel for the defendants, sought time to file affidavit disclosing returns of the Limited Liability Company in which Wajid had an interest.
Justice Riyaz Chagla granted them to file the details and kept the matter for hearing on November 22.
She submitted a list of properties owned by Wajid solely
According to Kamalrukh’s plea, the brothers had been composing music for over 2 decades and since 2014, established M/s Sajid Wajid LLP. Over the years, they accumulated a lot of wealth, jointly and severally. She submitted a list of properties owned by Wajid solely, which include Rs 8 crore worth paintings - of M F Hussain, Tyeb Mehta, V S Gaitonde, S H Raza and J Swaminathan, but are in Sajid’s custody.
Wajid and Kamalrukh, a Parsi, married in August 2003 under the Special Marriage Act and have a daughter, 16 and son, 9. She has contended that due to her refusal to convert, her mother-in-law never accepted her. Hence, she and Wajid started residing separately.
In October 2014, Wajid filed for divorce and the consent terms were signed in 2017. However, the same were abated in January 2021 due to his death.
Kamalrukh has contended that Wajid filed the divorce proceedings
Kamalrukh has contended that Wajid filed the divorce proceedings only to keep his mother happy and they continued to maintain conjugal relations till January 2020. She visited Wajid in hospital but due to the lockdown she kept constant touch with him through video calls and messages. Around May 22,2020 connection from Wajid’s end stopped.
After Wajid’s death, Razia and Sajid wrote to societies where Wajid held properties not to transfer them to Kamalrukh since they were divorced and she has no rights.
The mother also filed a testamentary petition applying for Letters of Administration of Wajid’s estate based on May 2020 hibanama (gift-deed) in which he allegedly desired not to give anything to his wife and children.
Kamalrukh has alleged that the hibanama is false and fabricated and the mother-son are attempting to usurp Wajid’s entire estate excluding her and their children. However, Kamalrukh pointed out that she has been receiving notices in respect of Wajid’s Rs 49 lakh tax liability.
