A MAN who challenged his mother’s will granting his younger sibling a larger share of the inheritance has lost his case in a British court.
Rakesh Gupta alleged that his late mother Urmila Gupta’s will was invalid due to her lack of
English language skills.
The eldest of three children, Rakesh disputed the will which saw the defendant Naresh Gupta, who is Rakesh’s younger brother, have the family home left to him, together with a cash sum.
Urmila and her husband Laxmi had instructed a local solicitor to make mirror wills for both of them in the late 1990s.
However, after Urmila’s death in early 2014, Rakesh brought a claim challenging his mother’s will in early 2017. He stated that she understood little English and could only speak a minimal amount, meaning she could not have known and approved of the
contents of the will she executed alongside her husband.
Urmila and Laxmi, who moved from India to the UK in 1957, established a successful wig making business in north London in the mid-1960s. Rakesh joined the business in 1972.
The couple, together with their youngest child Naresh, his wife Meena and their two children Mohini and Rishi, bought a property in north London in 1984.
The court heard that as Urmila’s health began to deteriorate in her later years, Laxmi and Meena were her primary carers.
The case, however, was “unusual” in that the solicitor, Anal Sheikh, who was responsible for
the execution of the will, had been struck off in 2009. The will file was not available and several key witnesses, such as Urmila’s GP as well as bank manager, had either died or were untraceable.
Ryan Mowat, head of contentious trusts and probate at law firm Kingsley Napley LLP, and the lead partner on the case, also touched upon the atypical nature of the claim alleging Urmila’s lack of English language skills.
“My client [Naresh] rejected that allegation and anyway the judge accepted our position that it was probable that his loving parents had discussed their mirror wills together,” Mowat said.
“It highlights [the fact] that claimants should only challenge the validity of a will when they
have good evidence that it does not reflect the will maker’s testamentary intentions.”
In his claim, Rakesh alleged that his father Laxmi’s “dominance” of Urmila ought to raise
suspicion of her decision to benefit one of her three children differently under the will.
Despite his claims, however, judge Charles Hollander QC concluded that Rakesh had not established any suspicious circumstances.
Hollander noted it would be “astonishing” if Laxmi and Urmila had not discussed the contents of the wills before they were written up, even if Laxmi had been the “driving force” within their relationship.
He added that although Urmila may have spoken to her native Hindi when she was with other people who spoke the language, she would have been willing to express herself in English, especially to her UK-born grandchildren.
A spokesperson for Kingsley Napley confirmed that the courts had seen an “explosion” of cases which had attempted to challenge wills in recent years.
“Want of knowledge and approval claims can sometimes be seen by claimants as an ‘easier’ route to challenging a will than on other grounds, such as testamentary capacity or undue influence. But in this case, the claimant was unable to demonstrate that the circumstances
surrounding Urmila’s will were sufficient to arouse the court’s suspicions,” they said.
Met Office issues yellow weather warnings for wind and rain on Thursday
Low-pressure system could become a named storm, possibly ‘Storm Bram’ or ‘Storm Benjamin’
Forecasters warn of flooding, travel disruption, and potential power cuts
Warnings in place for Thursday
The Met Office has issued yellow weather warnings for wind and rain across large parts of southern and eastern England, as a deepening area of low pressure moves across the UK on Thursday.
Forecasters say the system could bring heavy rainfall and gusts strong enough to cause localised flooding and travel disruption. While the impacts are not expected to be severe enough for the Met Office to name it a storm, other European weather agencies may decide otherwise.
Heavy rain and powerful gusts expected
Rain will begin spreading into southern England late on Wednesday before moving northeast through Thursday. Rainfall totals are expected to reach 20–30mm widely, with some areas, including Devon, Cornwall, and eastern England, seeing 30–50mm or more.
Strong north-westerly winds are forecast to develop, with gusts between 45–55mph (70–90km/h) possible in many areas, and up to 65mph (105km/h) along parts of the east coast.
The Met Office has warned that isolated gusts could briefly reach 75mph (120km/h) later on Thursday, posing a risk of fallen trees, power outages, and further travel delays.
Potential for a named storm
Although the Met Office does not currently expect to name the weather system, neighbouring meteorological agencies could.
If the impacts are greater in northern France or Belgium, Météo France or Belgium’s Royal Meteorological Institute could designate it as Storm Benjamin, the next on the south-western Europe list.
Alternatively, if the Netherlands determines the system poses greater risks there, it could be named Storm Bram, drawn from the shared naming list used by the UK, Ireland, and the Netherlands.
Meteorological agencies across Europe will coordinate before confirming any name to maintain consistency across forecasts.
Public advised to stay alert
With uncertainty still surrounding the intensity of the low-pressure system, forecasters are urging the public to monitor updates closely and plan for possible travel disruption or power interruptions.
Up-to-date warnings and forecasts are available through the Met Office and BBC Weather channels.
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