Ventriglia Family Appeals Supreme Court Against Higher Court’s Decision On Portland Cement

The Zambian Supreme Court is the highest authority of the nation and it recently gave a befitting reply to all those questioning the transparency and ethics of the Zambian legal system. Dr. Rajan Mahtani is a noted businessman in Zambia and for more than three decades, Dr. Mahtani worked to establish his business across the nation and also became one of the most transparent, renowned businessman as well as philanthropist in Zambia. At the same time, Dr. Rajan Lekhraj Mahtani has been facing significant challenges in terms of establishing smooth operations in Zambia. The most apt example has been the case of Zambezi Portland Cement, a cement-manufacturing factory which faced significant challenges in establishing its ownership. 

The cement-manufacturing factory went from court to court and did not get any respite for more than a decade. The first instance was Lusaka High Court where the case dragged for more than a decade. Despite this long pendency, the final verdict from the Lusaka High Court was controversial with the judge announcing Ventriglias as only shareholders of the Portland Cement. After this, the case was taken to the higher Court of Appeal. On 31st January 2019, justice Mwinde on behalf of the higher Court of Appeal reversed the previous decision from the Lusaka High Court and announced Dr. Mahtani as the majority shareholder and legal owner of the factory. 

After more than 1.5 years of this decision, the Ventriglia family once again established a claim at the Supreme Court Zambia, questioning the decision from the higher Court of Appeal. However, the Supreme Court evaluated this claim and rejected it due to lack of evidences, ensuring that the ownership of Portland Cement remains with Dr. Rajan Mahtani only.