Durban - Former lovers Rosanne Narandas and Marco Accolla came within an arm’s length of each other this week, but the setting was not the expensive Musgrave Road “love nest” they once shared.
For the umpteenth time since their acrimonious split last year, court has been the venue to settle differences.
Their legal teams appeared before Durban High Court Judge Themba Sishi over how to dispense with the couple’s high-end flat, said to now be worth R7 million, which they called “Hugh Hefner’s pad”.
Accolla was asking the court to order the sale of the flat. He alleged in court documents that, since they split, Narandas had frustrated efforts to sell the flat, which cost R4.2m. Both parties agreed they had contributed R600 000 each towards the purchase but held opposing views on how the balance was paid.
Accolla says money from the business they jointly owned, Noella and Rosario CC (trading as Ooh La La fashion boutiques), was used to pay the remaining R3m.
Narandas disagreed. She lodged a counter application asking to be paid R1.5m plus interest at 15.5 percent because, she claimed, she loaned Accolla money to pay his half of the outstanding balance.
Court “C” was packed when Accolla walked into the gallery.
Narandas entered later. She was forced to stand within touching distance of Accolla.
A few uneasy glances were exchanged between the two.
The relationship between Accolla and the still married Narandas began in 2007 and flourished over seven years, even though Accolla claimed to be a “God-fearing person” and he was “perpetrating a sin”.
But their relationship soured when Narandas went to the aid of her gravely ill husband, who suffered a heart attack. Accolla claimed he was eventually locked out of the Musgrave flat and his belongings thrown into the street.
Narandas denied ejecting Accolla out of their lair. “He left after an abusive torrent against me,” she claimed.
Narandas said she devoted more time to her husband but Accolla was pressurising her to divorce her him.
Narandas claimed she offered to buy Accolla’s share of the flat after their fall-out, on condition the R1.5m loan and interest was first deducted.
Advocate Garth Harrison, representing Accolla, argued the relationship between his client and Narandas was irreconcilable, therefore the flat had to be sold. When Judge Sishi asked about the money Narandas claimed to have loaned Accolla, Harrison said: “There was no loan, money was supposed to have come from the business. The 15.5 percent interest rate is a bizarre notion because it would have been cheaper to take a bond.”
She must provide oral evidence to support her loan claim, Harrison told the court.
Advocate Jay Naidoo, acting for Narandas, said his client welcomed this and Narandas had no intention of withdrawing her counter-claim.
Judge Sishi then adjourned matters to a later date.
Sunday Tribune