Uddhav got Balasaheb’s sign fraudulently: Jaidev in Bombay HC

“Balasaheb (Thackeray) was ready to give me a share of his property, but in 2011 Uddhav took his signature on some documents the contents of which Balasaheb did not know,” claimed Jaidev Thackeray, the estranged son of late Shiv Sena chief and Uddhav’s brother before Bombay high court on Monday. The court was hearing the testamentary suit of the Thackeray family in which Jaidev has questioned the validity of Balasaheb’s will.

“I never asked Uddhav about those documents because my father told me not to ask him as he did not want any quarrel between us,” Jaidev said, as part of his testimony. Before filing the petition, his relations with Uddhav were cordial, he said, but thereafter, Uddhav neither picked up his phone nor returned any of his text messages. To the court’s question as to when he came to know about his father’s will, Jaidev replied that he came to know about it while reading an article on the website of The Telegraph. When Uddhav’s lawyer, Rohit Kapadia, asked Jaidev as to why he left Matoshree in 1995, the latter said that owing to a particular incident, he took the decision to leave.

However, Jaidev refused to specify the incident saying it was a family issue. In 2003, Jaidev told Balasaheb that he wished to return to Matoshree but did not actually do so.

In the course of his testimony, Jaidev said that before 1995, he used to stay in Matoshree with other family members and there were rooms for Balasaheb, Bindu Madhav and him on the first floor. One room was built on the terrace for Uddhav, he said, adding that though there was only one kitchen in Matoshree, they hardly ever had dinner together because everybody was busy with their own work.

As Jaidev’s testimony is incomplete, the court will continue to hear him on Tuesday. On June 20, the HC had fixed the date for Jaidev to appear before it as witness.

It is learnt that Jaidev Thackeray requested the court to adjourn the matter to a later date citing ill health. However, Justice Patel refused his request and said the court would not work according to his convenience. Justice Patel told Jaidev that on the last hearing, they had discussed with his lawyer and fixed these dates, so he would have to depose before the court.