Kolkata: The Calcutta High Court today (Sep 14, 2004) granted 10 days time to Rajendra Lodha to submit the original of the registered purported Will of Priyamvada Birla by which he has been bequeathed the Rs 5000 crore worth assets of M P Birla group.

Justice Kalyanjyoti Sengupta passed the order after hearing the submissions from Lodha's counsel Anindya Mitra with regard to the anomalies pointed by the Testamentary Department in the probate application for legal authentication of the same Will.

The court, however, did not take up other anamolies in Lodha's probate application, which would be considered when it would decide whether the application was maintainable.

One important anomaly in Lodha's application, as pointed out by the Testamentary Department, was that it has not been verified by any of the three witnesses of the Will.

The Court had earlier taken note of the anomalies in the Lodha's probate application mainly after he sought dismissal of probate application of Birlas for legal authentication of purported mutual wills of M P Birla and Priyamvada Birla on the ground that they had not submitted the originals.

Lodha had claimed control of M P Birla group on the basis of the purported Will of Priyamvada Birla prepared in 1999 immediately after her death on July 3.

The Birla family, however, challenged him claiming that both M P Birla and Priyamvada Birla, who had no issue, had sought to donate their entire assets to charities by mutual Wills made in 1982.

Probate applications for both the disputed Wills are pending before the court.