Court Freezes Rai Family Account
A Nairobi High Court has frozen the Rai Family’s bank account after one of the brothers filed a lawsuit alleging he was removed as a signatory, reigniting a fierce succession battle.
Iqbal Rai went to court to contest his removal as a signatory to Rai Investments Ltd held at a local bank, positioning him against his older brother Jaswant Rai, who was recently under State scrutiny for his business dealings in the sugar industry.
“The Applicant was wrongfully removed from the mandate of the interested party unprocedural and without a resolution. The said removal renders the account susceptible to manipulation and withdrawals without the consent of the Applicant who is still a director/shareholder,” an application filed by Iqbal through lawyer Ekuru Aukot read in part.
Iqbal has now urged the court to reinstate him as a signatory to the multi-billion empire among other prayers.
The dispute concerns the inheritance of their father, Tarlochan Singh Rai, who passed away in 2010. The younger Rai told the court that his efforts to be reinstated were unsuccessful.
“All efforts by the Plaintiff to follow up on the matter and to ensure that he is restored as being part of the mandate have been treated with contempt despite the grave risk that obtains in the current circumstances,” court documents state.
Since 1978, Iqbal has served as a director and shareholder alongside his siblings, Sarbjit Rai and Jaswant Rai.
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In his application, he stated that he was removed as a signatory in February 2023, and he asked the court to order bank statements in March.
“That sometime towards the end of February 2023, I requested the Defendant for Rai Investments Limited’s bank statements in my capacity as director/shareholder but was, to my shock and dismay, told that I could not access the bank statements as was not on the bank mandate,” Iqbal told the court.
Nevertheless, according to company registry records, Iqbal is still a director of the investment firm.
“That as it stands, the most recent search at the Companies Registry shows that I am still a director/Shareholder of the company,” he told the court.
The Rai family has investments in real estate, upscale retail, and manufacturing, with operations in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, and Malawi, among others.
As was the case with the battle over the defunct Mumias Sugar Company, the conflict over the empire frequently overflowed over into business rivalries.
Sarbit Rai, who among other businesses controls a sugar mill in neighboring Uganda, won the bid to revive the failing mill, but Janswant opposed the move, resulting in a lengthy legal battle.
Court Freezes Rai Family Account
