MUMBAI: A dispute over 300 acres of land owned by the family running the popular Parsi Dairy Farm has landed in the Bombay high court.
The family has accused one of the dairy partners of “fraud” by creating a fabricated power of attorney in his name to control the property located at Talasari on the Maharashtra-Gujarat border.
Article by Nauzer K Bharucha & Swati Deshpande | Times of India
Last week, Justice S J Kathawalla directed Urvaksh Naval Hoyvoy, grandson of the Parsi Dairy founder, to disclose if he has created any third party rights on the land or received money based on this power of attorney. Hoyvoy is one of the eight partners of the dairy.
Owner family says partner forged documents to misuse land
The family that owns Parsi Dairy Farm has moved the Bombay high court accusing one of the partners, Urvaksh Naval Hoyvoy, of fraud. The petition was filed by Meher K Patel and supported by other family members, all partners in the 102-year-old dairy known for its high-quality milk, butter, ghee, and assortment of mithais. Hoyvoy’s wife, Amy, and son, Armaan, have also been made respondents. It said the partners had found out that the agriculture land was converted into non-agriculture land on the basis of forged power of attorney.
The court said Hoyvoy must file an affidavit, giving details about him having made use of or acted upon the power of attorney. It also sought a record of all transactions he may have had over the 300 acres at Warvada since he was made a partner of Parsi Dairy Farm. “In the event of him having received any monies, he shall disclose the accounts in which the amounts received by him have been deposited,” it said.
When the court asked Hoyvoy to produce the original power of attorney, his counsel said the original is “not traceable since 2013-14” and he will produce it when traced. He undertook not to act on the power of attorney of 2007.
The family approached the court, restraining Hoyvoy from disposing of, alienating or creating third party rights of any immoveable property owned by Parsi Dairy Farm (which includes the Dairy Land). Hoyvoy’s family has been running a restaurant, Parsi Da Dhaba, on a part of the land on the highway. His partners want him to close the restaurant on their land and sought a compensation of Rs 6 lakh a month towards use of land for running the restaurant and Dairy Land Products.
The HC has directed Hoyvoy to file an affidavit with “details from 20.06.2011 in respect of all the third party rights created by him in relation to the immovable properties of the Parsi Dairy Farm”. Until further orders, all the partners shall maintain status quo in respect of the MoU, the HC directed.
The petitioner also said Hoyvoy was collecting money and “wrongfully” creating encumbrances and liabilities on the land. He had “falsely and fraudulently” represented the partnership firm’s land as the land of Dairy Land Farm Houses and “collected advances from numerous people towards proposed allotment upon development of the project’’, they added.
The partners said they filed an RTI application in the
tehsildar’s office, seeking a copy of the “forged power of attorney”. However, the tehsildar said it was not traceable. They filed another application in March 2013 to the circle officer/tehsildar in Palghar district for a copy, which they got. The petitioner said the signatures of all eight partners were forged.
Since the family arbitration was already on, Hoyvoy, to avoid criminal proceedings, signed consent terms to settle the matter and all disputes in 2013.
In court, Hoyvoy raised a grievance: his sister, who stays with their mother in Pune, was not allowing him to meet her. The sister on April 13 informed Justice Kathawalla that their mother was “refusing to meet or talk to him”. The judge directed Hoyvoy to visit his mother on April 14 for two hours. A court officer was also sent to Pune and report by April 27, when the matter will next be heard, whether the mother genuinely refused.