Contractor to pay sh320m for demolishing judge’s house

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The High Court in Kampala has ordered Mohinder Singh Channa, the Director of Coronation Developers Uganda Limited to pay sh320 Million to retired Judge Anup Singh Choudry as compensation for demolishing his house.

According to the ruling by Justice Musa Ssekaana, Channa breached the contract that authorized him to do only refurbishments and renovations on the house but instead demolished the entire house without Choudry’s permission.

Court records indicate that Justice Choudry instructed Channa and N.S Channa trading as Coronation Developers Uganda Limited to renovate and refurbish his house and extend his bungalow located in Nambi Road in Entebbe to include a library.

According to the records, on July 14 2008 before Choudry left for the United Kingdom, he paid 50 million shillings as partial payment for the services.

When Choudry returned, he was surprised to find the house demolished. He says that the contractors told him that during the construction works, they found the house weak and his engineer Robert Musoke Walugembe advised the contractors to demolish it.

Choudry asked the court to find the respondents in breach of contract and pay him compensation of more than 693 million shillings for the damages caused to him since he had to find alternative accommodation.

But Justice Ssekaana has said that after analyzing all the evidence submitted to him, the verbal contract was entered between Choudry and Channa as a person and not the Company, Coronation Developers (U) Ltd.

“The 1st defendant Channa should have conducted a structural survey before embarking on any activity to alter the structure. At this point, they should have advised the plaintiff accordingly so that the plaintiff could make an informed
the decision, with the full knowledge that any damage by them to the structure coul 
be covered by the contractor”, said Ssekaana.

According to the Judge, Channa acted in breach of the oral contract and had a duty to seek further directions on how to proceed with the contract if at all it became
impossible to perform without having to demolish the entire structure which was
never foreseen by Choudry.

Ssekaana awarded Choudry 320 million shillings as general damages with an interest of 23 percent and costs effective the date of judgment.

This is not the first time that a Judge issued a contractor for breach of contract.

In 2020, Justice Lydia Mugambe sued Hallmark Construction and Painting Company Limited and its director, James Kayita for unprofessional conduct and executing shoddy works on her ten-unit apartment block located in Ntebetebe Katuba Cell in Bweyogere in Kira Municipality, Wakiso district.

Mugambe demanded to be paid 323 million Shillings in special damages and 10 million Shillings per month as monies foregone from February 1, 2020, till the completion of the rectification works on the apartments as well as general damages due to anguish and numerous inconveniences and commercial losses caused to her as a result of the breach of contractual obligations.

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