Madhu Kapoor, widow of Ashok Kapoor, founder-promoter of Yes Bank Ltd, has alleged that Rana Kapoor, the chief executive officer and managing director of the bank who is married to Madhu’s sister, is attempting to deprive her and her children of their rights.

Ashok Kapoor died in the 26/11 terror attack at Oberoi Hotel. Madhu Kapoor has claimed in a suit filed in the Bombay high court on Thursday that attempts to get Rana Kapoor to honour her family’s rights had failed.  

Madhu and her two children have alleged that the defendants, Rana Kapoor and his associates are seeking to exclude the plaintiffs and deprive them of their legitimate entitlement, rights and dues under the share subscription agreement and Articles of Association of Yes Bank.

Ashok Kapoor, his wife and children, as also Rana Kapoor and his family were original promoters of Yes Bank along with Rabo Bank. The family dispute now focuses on one of the main terms of the share subscription agreement, specifically in relation to the appointment of the directors of the company.

The annual general meeting (AGM) of Yes Bank is scheduled on June 8 and the plaintiffs have therefore sought the intervention of the court on Friday.

The Articles of Association of the bank provide that the ‘Indian partners’ of the bank, that is, Ashok Kapoor and Rana Kapoor, would have the right to nominate three directors collectively to the board as long as the Indian partners hold at least 10% of the issued and paid-up share capital of the company. In the Articles of Association of the company, the promoter Ashok Kapoor was meant to include his successors, legal representatives and permitted assigns. The same goes for Rana Kapoor.

Madhu has claimed that according to item numbers 6, 7 and 8 in the notice for the AGM, under the heading of ‘special business’, which includes proposed resolutions for appointment of three directors on the board, one of whom is to be an independent director and the other two are being nominated by “the Indian promoter Mr. Rana Kapoor”. This, she alleges, seeks to deny the rights of the Ashok Kapoor group.

Therefore, the AGM should not transact this business, and the court should intervene accordingly, she has prayed. The plaintiffs have also enumerated several instances of Rana Kapoor’s alleged attempts in the bank’s working to obliterate Ashok Kapoor’s legacy since the tragic incident of 26/11.

Yes Bank Ltd, a relatively new entrant in private banking, has total assets of nearly a Rs 1 lakh crore and a net profit of Rs1,300 crore. Shares of Yes Bank closed at Rs 507.55 at the Bombay Stock Exchange on Thursday.