The Bombay High Court has admitted an application by Madhu Kapur, challenging the nomination of three directors to the board of YES Bank , despite an argument by the bank that the plea was not maintainable and did not fall under the court’s jurisdiction. In 2013, Kapur had filed a plea opposing the appointment of three directors (Arun Diwan Nanda, M.R. Srinivasan and Ravish Chopra) nominated by MD and CEO Rana Kapoor and sought participatory rights in the nomination process. But the court had then refused to stay the procedure. Madhu Kapur is the widow of the co-founder of Yes Bank Ashok Kapur who passed away in the 26/11 terror attacks, and the sister of Bindu Kapoor, the wife of the Rana Kapoor. Ashok Kapur and Rana Kapoor (who holds 13.72% stake) co-founded Yes Bank in 2004. Earlier in 2009, Kapur, who holds 11.71% in the private lender, had also asked for her daughter Shagun Gogia to be appointed as her nominee board member but the request was turned down by the board on the grounds that the nomination may not pass the “fit and proper” criterion laid down by the Reserve Bank of India. But the latest development may come as a minor setback to Kapoor and the Yes Bank board. The high court will now hear the legal merits of the case later.
