Sudhir hired arguably Kampala’s biggest law firm to do his bidding in a case where Bank of Uganda wants him to return 48 land titles and payback over 400 billion shillings he got from the null defunct Crane bank. In his 62-page defense, a copy of which NTV had, Sudhir would argue that Bank of Uganda violated a confidential settlement and release agreement when they sued him. NTV had in its possession this agreement that was backed with the seal of the Central Bank and signed by the governor, Sudhir, and BOU Secretary.

Should the case start, the document will be at the heart of the businessman’s defense. In the 19 Clauses of it, the document sought to shield Sudhir and the Bank of Uganda from any suit and illegal claims that would arise after it was signed in March 2017. Take for example Clause 3 where businessman Sudhir Ruparelia agreed to pay $60m of which $42m would be given in real property and $18m in cash to the bank’s dollar account by June this year. The annex to the document shows Sudhir submitted land titles that would settle the case. In order to return to Sudhir Crane Bank Limited as a company, BOU set out a list of agreed loans which would be put in Sudhir’s name and payment on them would fall under payment of Sudhir to BOU and DFCU, the purchasing bank. But everything in the agreement boiled down to Clause 7 on which both parties agreed not to lodge any suit arising from matters of the bank. When the case starts, should the mediation fail, the principal arguments would abound disagreements.