Victory in disputes is still a loss!

In India, a billion people encourage each other to get into disputes, or if already in one, fuel it to the fullest! Because it’s the people who benefit the most from your disputes, more than you! If not monetarily, entertainment and gossips for sure! After my 4 years long family business dispute, I learnt a few lessons which I expect people to refrain from. 

If you ever make someone a Director in your company, ensure you have his resignation and board approvals signed prior to appointment. Laws and NCLT are almost impossible to convince removal of any director without his own willingness, especially once in dispute. If you can avoid making someone a shareholder and a director, nothing is better than giving them a good, well defined position and role. The first thing these directors and shareholders can do is move to NCLT filing the most common ‘Mismanagement and misappropriation of company’ petition, which would go on for years, simultaneously damaging your company everyday. The registrar of companies would mark your company as ‘disputed’ which would panic your bankers, vendors, new contracts and government agencies, since verifying status from ROC is mandatory for most of them. Such evil minded directors or disputed personnel would also write to banks, clients, vendors in capacities of directors and shareholders, which bring you to a standstill, with no business, no more financial help and no supplies of material or goods. The best part of the amusing population is, they would hear both side of the stories and encourage both parties to continue, ensuring they won’t support the opposition!

If you are already chasing lawyers, you know well by now that all of them have more workload and cases than they can handle. They are taking all your money in advance and behave like they are doing a favour on you, at the same time not getting the relief they promised you from the courts. Oh yes, it was your mistake that you didn’t share a small fact, which in reality didn’t even matter, but your lawyer was never wrong and it was you! Most of the lawyers don’t even understand your intentions and facts, proceed with filings and prayers through applications burning up a new unpredicted fire, another one you would have to put off, may be before the actual bigger fire you hired that lawyer to put off for! And yes, don’t buy the scheme that your lawyer offers of corrupting judges and getting orders for a price. Unless you drove a car on footpath and killed people, deer, etc!

If you are advised to register police complaint and pay to get it converted to a FIR, followed by arrests of your opposition, get ready to be ripped off! Lot of middlemen ranging from touts, informers of police, senior police inspector, assistant commissioner of police (A.C.P.), deputy comm of police (D.C.P.), additional comm of police (A.C.P.), joint comm of police (Jt C.P.) and finally the commissioner of police are just waiting to hear your stories! I learnt this hierarchy after meeting and dealing with them all! The price you may pay at every stage not only keeps increasing, but is not even going to them or demanded by them. You are being fooled most of the times by your ‘influential agent’! Mumbai and Delhi police are primarily interested in body crimes where blood is visible or serious crimes like rape, murders, etc. 

The moment you have filed an FIR stating wrong doings, financial crimes and other civil matters, you have dug a hole for yourself, in which the police will themselves push you. Don’t get discouraged yet, you can pay the right price and get serious FIR’s filed including rape, attempt to murder and others if you have the money! There’s no assurance your opposition would still go to jail and your dreams of negotiating with him while he is behind the bars, would be shattered in no time! Police department knows very well that such false FIRs help the police buy luxuries from your money, which they can’t afford. Mind you, they already have a bigger plan to milk your opposition in this false FIR, little more than what you paid, so they can buy more luxuries they feel they deserve! Ever heard about white collared goons or gangsters? You don’t want to be either friends or enemies with them.

If you are beyond court dates for years together and stay stressed about police knocking on your door at odd hours, you are still lucky! Next level of disputes can knock income tax, GST, customs, DRI, E.D. and other agencies, who are masters in interpreting everything in writing on this earth, in a manner they want. Trust me, if you feel they have to be within the law to act against you and you have rights, be prepared for torcher and agreeing to their interpretations, despite of all parties knowing what the truth and facts are. And yes, most of the law permits them to act on verbal confessions and their own interpretations of documents, which is where you are always on the losing end. So is your opposition as well, but the one who pays more will win eventually. 

What can really damage you and disturb you is media. If any article of you is printed in any newspaper or broadcasted on any news channel, irrespective of the truth or fact, people will believe that. And yes, whoever didn’t read newspapers in their life or seldom watch news on TV, that particular day the entire population would be reading and watching your news! And that fake or genuine news, which spread like a wild fire on whatsapp and other social media, will become your character and your introduction. 

Since decades our ancestors had multiple sayings, all boiling down to avoid lawyers, police, courts and hospitals! Start believing in and preaching those quotes to yourself, your family members, relatives and friends. The happiest person on earth today is not the one who has won all the battles and have all the monies, but is one who doesn’t have to deal with police, courts, lawyers, government agencies, doctors and hospitals.

Also, one thing I disagree with my father, who always believes and says that with money you can settle any dispute and stop any legal nuisance. Had this been the case, Chidambaram wouldn’t have been in jail, Mallya, Choksi, Nirav Modi, Sivakumar and others wouldn’t have to suffer, because they have enough money to literally corrupt the system they are dealing with.

And my closing notes would be, in every dispute, with every single day passing by, you are actually going two days behind. The collateral damage, opportunity cost apart from mental harassment, waves of feelings creating silent traumas and depressed moods are heavy expenses which you quietly incur, with twice the price for every single day passing by!