BY IRENE ONYANGO.
A woman fighting over a parcel of land with her nephew has claimed that the disputed plot belongs to her having been given by her late father.
Rachael Nduta told Justice Ogutu Mboya that before her father died, he subdivided his land among his five children. She was given the portion, which is being claimed by Raoul, who has been residing in the United Kingdom.
The woman told the court that she later erected a house on a piece of land. The land in question is situated in Uthiru Township in Dagoretti.
Raoul Emanuel Muchene on his part claims that his aunt developed her portion and continued occupying his piece, taking advantage of his father’s demise and his absence since he lives in the UK.
Raoul’s lawyers Danstan Omari and Omayio Arang’a told the court that the aunt took advantage of the nephew’s absence to unlawfully and forcibly detain his share of the land.
Muchene he was duly registered as the absolute proprietor of the piece of land situated in Uthiru Township and more particularly known as Dagoretti/Uthiru/884(mother tittle).
It is Muchene case that when he demanded that Nduta surrenders the same,she filed a case against him in Milimani Chief Magistrate ‘Civil Case No.993 of 2016,which suit was dismissed.
Muchene avers that even though his Aunt case was dismissed by the magistrate courts, she had remained adamant and refused to vacate his property and at times using vigilante boys to bar him from taking over possession of his property.
Muchene’s efforts to recover their property and develop the same have now hit a snag with Nduta’s refusal to vacate the same,even though she continues to reap the benefits of her own property which she developed while sitting on and refusing to vacate Muchene’s property.
Nduta however claims that she only took possession of what was rightfully given to her which was the house located at the land of her brother. She further states to the court that her late father, Caxton, in the presence of her siblings assigned her brother the land with conditions that the house would permanently belong to her.
“I left my husband and came back home to my father where I was given a house together with my children. When my father was allocating us lands later in 1986, my brother was assigned the land that the house I was staying in but with a condition. That house therefore is rightfully mine because I was entitled to it by my father,” said Rachael.
Nduta wants the court to declare that there exists a customary implied trust over that entire house,development erected on the suit property. AND /OR in am alternative a declaration that Nduta is entitled to the said parcel of land under the doctrine of adverse possession.
She also wants to issue permanent injunction restraining Raoul and the father or any one acting under their instructions from evicting,selling,transferring or interfering with the suit property.
The court has allowed both the plaintiff and the defendant 21 days to serve their written submissions and avail the same in court as a hard copy.
The case will be mentioned on September 27, 2022.
