The Supreme Court, which issued notices in the appeal filed by M.C. Sivagami and M.C. Natarajan claiming ownership of the property on Chennai’s East Coast Road belonging to actress Sridevi, has ordered the appointment of a retired High Court judge to resolve the matter through mediation talks.
The late actress Sridevi purchased 2.7 acres of land on Chennai’s East Coast Road in 1988 from the family of a man named Sambandha Mudaliar. While Sridevi’s family has been enjoying possession of that property for the past 37 years, Sambandha Mudaliar’s son Chandrasekaran’s son Natarajan and daughter Sivagami claimed ownership of the property and filed a civil suit in the Chengalpattu Additional Sessions Court.
Sridevi’s husband Boney Kapoor and her daughters Janhvi Kapoor and Khushi Kapoor filed a petition in the Chengalpattu court seeking dismissal of this case. However, the Chengalpattu court dismissed the petition, stating that a decision on the ownership of the property could be made only after a full investigation.
Challenging this order, Boney Kapoor, Janhvi Kapoor, and Khushi Kapoor filed a petition in the Chennai High Court. In it, they stated that while they have legally purchased and been enjoying the property, some people have now filed a case claiming rights after 37 years on the basis of a fake legal heir certificate. Therefore, they had requested that the case pending in the Chengalpattu court be dismissed.
After hearing this petition, the Madras High Court noted that the High Court had already dismissed the case filed by Natarajan and Sivakami seeking a share in Sridevi’s property. However, it stated that their filing of the case again in the Chengalpattu court with the intention of grabbing the property was not acceptable, and dismissed the case pending in the Chengalpattu court and set aside the order.
Against the Madras High Court’s order, Sivakami and Natarajan filed an appeal petition in the Supreme Court.
The petition came up for hearing before the bench comprising Judges K.V. Viswanathan and Arun Palli. At that time, senior advocate Raju Ramachandran, appearing for Sivagami and Natarajan, said, “One-fifth of the property located on Chennai’s East Coast Road belonged to Chandrasekar, the petitioners’ father.
However, his brothers and sisters illegally sold it without the petitioners’ father’s knowledge; therefore, the sale deeds for this property should be cancelled,” he requested.
In response, senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi and advocate Anand Selvam, appearing for the Bonnie Kapoor side, said, “The land was purchased in 1988, yet only in 2025 have they filed a suit claiming rights over the land.
Even during the lifetime of the petitioners’ father, no case was filed claiming rights over this property; in such a situation, this case has now been filed with the intention of grabbing the property. Therefore, the petitioners’ request should be rejected,” they urged.
However, the judges, who refused to fully accept that argument, said, “Why can’t both sides sit down and talk and arrive at a settlement?” The Bonnie Kapoor side, which refused to accept that, said that when they are claiming that the petitioners have no rights in the property at all, why should they go for a settlement? In response, the judges said that the petitioners do have certain rights in this matter and advised them to proceed toward a settlement.
They also ordered the appointment of a retired High Court judge to mediate further. If a settlement is not reached, they ordered notices to be issued for the respondents, including Boney Kapoor, Janhvi Kapoor, and Khushi Kapoor, to file their replies to this petition, and adjourned the hearing of the case to Dec. 18.
