M P Birla, Priyamvada wills not mutual, says Lodha

The Lodhas have alleged in the affidavits, in reply to the discharge petition, that the wills of late M P Birla and Priyamvada Birla made in 1982 are not "mutual", the moot point in Birlas' affidavit in opposition of the petition.

Sources said mutual wills were necessarily identical and the two wills of 1981 and later 1982 were clearly not identical.

The significance of mutual wills was that it could be argued as irrevocable, in which case the will made by Priyamvada Birla in 1999, bequeathing entire property to Rajendra Singh Lodha, would be invalidated.

The main difference in the two sets of mutual wills being cited by Lodhas was in bequest of assets.

Clause 3 of Priyamvada Birla's will says that her ornaments, jewellery, gold coins and articles were bequeathed to the three daughters of K K Birla in absolute and equal proportion.

However, clause 3 of M P Birla's will said that the executors would have the power to donate the estate to one or more public charitable trusts, societies or institutions and/ or establish one or more public charitable trusts, societies or institutions for public charitable objects as they may think fit.

Similar differences were pointed out in the concurrent wills of M P Birla and Priyamvada Birla in 1981.

The executors of the 1982 wills were different. In M P Birla's will of 1982, the executors were Priyamvada Birla, K K Birla and Kashi Nath Tapuriah.

However, the executors of Priyamvada Birla's will of 1982 were M P Birla, Ganga Prasad Birla and Kashi Nath Tapuriah. The executors of the 1981 wills were also different.

Debanjan Mandal of Fox & Mandal refused to comment on the contents of affidavits and said, "We have served N G Khaitan four affidavits in reply to the discharge petition and the matter is fixed for hearing tomorrow."

It is understood that the Lodhas have also alleged in the affidavits that the Birla family cannot be treated as a Hindu undivided family (HUF) and the properties of the different Birla factions were completely independent of each other.

Four affidavits have been filed by Lodhas in reply to the petition seeking discharge of the four caveators, K K Birla, G P Birla, B K Birla and Yashovardhan Birla.

Tomorrow three matters will be listed before justice K J Sengupta. First two matters were Khaitan's petitions filed on behalf of Birlas seeking to produced photo copies of the notaraised wills of M P Birla and Priyamvada Birla executed in 1981 and 1982 with the under taking to produce the original if the court requires.