The Supreme Court on Thursday urged restraint in the bitter dispute over the Kapur family trust, asking the warring sides led by late industrialist Sunjay Kapur’s mother Rani Kapur and wife Priya Kapur not to take any steps that could derail court-backed mediation proceedings.The apex court said an amicable resolution would be in the interest of all parties, warning that failure to settle could lead to a prolonged legal battle over the family’s assets and control of the trust.Also Read: Mahabharat will look very small: Supreme Court steps into bitter Kapur family trust battle“It will be in the interest of all parties concerned to put an end to this entire dispute amicably, otherwise it is going to be a ‘long drawn battle’,” a bench of Justices J B Pardiwala and Ujjal Bhuyan observed.The court had on May 7 appointed former Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud as mediator to help resolve the dispute surrounding the RK Family Trust.On Thursday, the bench was hearing an application filed by 80-year-old Rani Kapur, who raised concerns over a May 18 board meeting of Raghuvanshi Investment Pvt Ltd, a company she said holds substantial stakes in the group’s parent entity.According to her counsel, the agenda included the appointment of two independent directors and proposed changes to authorised signatories for operating the company’s bank accounts.The respondents, including Priya Kapur and Raghuvanshi Investment Pvt Ltd, argued that the appointment of independent directors should not be contentious and said the meeting had been called in compliance with directives issued by the Reserve Bank of India.The bench, however, asked both sides to avoid any action that could complicate the mediation process already underway.“We do not propose to say anything further at this point of time. We have already requested the mediator to start with the mediation proceedings. For the present, we request the opponents not to do anything which may directly affect the mediation proceedings,” the court said.The judges added that, for now, issues related to the appointment of independent directors and modifications to authorised signatories should not be taken up at the May 18 meeting.Also Read: Rani Kapur moves SC to bar Priya Kapur from trust affairs in estate dispute“We would like to examine the progress that takes place in so far as the mediation is concerned. Post this matter for further hearing on August 6,” the bench said.The court also observed that directives from the RBI and related statutory compliance requirements need not be insisted upon by regulators or authorities in the interim period.The latest hearing comes amid an escalating legal battle over the control of the RK Family Trust and the broader Kapur family estate.Rani Kapur has moved the court seeking to restrain Priya Kapur and others from interfering in the functioning of the trust while mediation continues. Earlier, on April 27, the Supreme Court sought responses from Priya Kapur and others to Rani Kapur’s plea seeking to declare the family trust “null and void”.Parallel proceedings related to the estate and trust assets are also pending before the Delhi High Court, where the petition seeks maintenance of status quo over the trust’s properties.Sunjay Kapur died on June 12 after collapsing during a polo match in England. He reportedly suffered a cardiac arrest. (With inputs from PTI)