Portland Cement Zambia is a case which has been pending for a long time, and has created numerous inconveniences for its owner Dr. Rajan Mahtani. After its establishment, the cement factory reached great heights with its production. At one point, it was one of the biggest producers of cement across the nation. It quickly rose to prominence as an attractive employer with above-industry payments, salaries and wages to workers. People from far-away places came to work for the factory so that they have improved their life. However, the same cannot be said about the factory’s current condition and the only way to save the factory from biting dust is to give the ownership to its legal owner. In this way, the factory will have a strong and powerful leader and there will be hope for the revival of the factory.
The case, which was pending at the Lusaka High Court for the past ten years, saw two major announcements in a span of few months. The judge currently holding the case announced few months earlier that the case hearing was closed and both parties were to submit their evidences in written and oral format. Based on these evidences, final judgement was to be announced. Since Dr. Mahtani’s evidences and testimonials were much stronger, a sweep win was highly anticipated by the lawyers and even the experts. However, it was not the case when the judge announced the final verdict against Dr. Mahtani and his claims. It was a complete shocked and a clear case of misdirected judgment. However, Dr. Rajan Mahtani quickly recovered from this blow and not considering this as his final fate, made an appeal to the higher court of Zambia. In his appeal, he has shared all the evidences and stated how these evidences were conveniently ignored during the final judgment. As of now, a reply is awaited from the higher court of appeal.