Dr. Rajan Lekhraj Mahtani is a noted philanthropist and businessman in Zambia who has been facing a significant uphill task for the past one decade. This task has been to remain positive and continue with perseverance despite the several hardships faced due to the lack of legal prowess and ethical standards within the Zambian government. However, all these positive attributes of Dr. Rajan Mahtani were finally rewarded when the Court of Appeal on 31st January 2019 announced the final judgment on Portland Cement Zambia. According to this judgment, Dr. Rajan Mahtani is majority shareholder of the cement factory. His company, Finsbury Investments, holds 58 percent shares at the factory. On the other hand, the Ventriglias are the minority shareholders with no legal ownership at the factory. Their entity, Ital Terrazzo Limited, holds just 42 percent shares of the factory. This verdict was given after looking into the various evidences and factual details. The verdict by Court of Appeal aligns with the original shareholders agreement established in the year 2007.
By giving this judgment, the Court of Appeal judge effectively reversed the decision from the Lusaka High Court judge. During this time, Justice Mwinde from the Court of Appeal also said that the judge below him was wrong in declaring Ventriglias as the only shareholders as this decision was biased and unethical. Furthermore, all forgery related allegations have been discarded by the judge. It was found that the process of mechanically placing signatures for business transactions was a common affair at the Zambezi Portland Cement. The judge also said that important member of the Ventriglia family, Claudio Ventriglia, engaged in similar practice and therefore, the allegations were invalid.
As of now, a timeline of three months from the date of the judgment has been given by the Court. During this time, both parties are required to complete their share regularization process. Furthermore, publications and news outlets trying to defame the latest verdict from Court of Appeal might face severe punishment from the government.
