Dr. Rajan Lekhraj Mahtani, a noted businessman and philanthropist in Zambia, took over the ownership of Portland Cement Zambia in the year 2005. In a matter of few years, Dr. Mahtani was able to transform a local plant into one of the largest cement-producing factories in Zambia. However, this success was short lived as the factory was soon unethically taken over from him. Thus, started one of the longest and most challenging court cases for Dr. Rajan Mahtani. The unethical takeover of the factory prompted Dr. Mahtani to approach Lusaka High Court. The court took more than a decade to provide a final verdict for the case. This verdict was given in the year 2018, almost a decade after originally registering the case at the Lusaka High Court. Despite this long stretch, the final decision from the court was not satisfying. Justice Nkonde on behalf of the Lusaka High Court announced that Ventriglias were only shareholders of the Portland Cement Zambia. This decision was given by justice Nkonde and was extremely controversial as all evidences and testimonials suggested otherwise.
Despite the struggles and financial constraints, Dr. Mahtani did not give up. He soon re-appealed to the higher Court of Appeal which is one of the biggest judiciary systems in Zambia. And the higher Court of Appeal lived up to its expectations by announcing the verdict within nine months. According to this final verdict, Dr. Rajan Mahtani was announced as majority shareholder and legal owner of the Portland Cement Zambia factory. This decision was given based on the fact that Dr. Rajan Mahtani paid a sum of one billion kwachas to the Portland Cement Zambia limited. This payment gave Dr. Mahtani ownership of 58 percent shares at the factory. This claim was further cemented by the proof of evidence in original Shareholders’ Agreement established in the year 2007. Based on these evidences, Justice Mwinde on behalf of Court of Appeal announced Dr. Mahtani as legal owner of the factory.
