The High Court has issued conservatory orders restraining the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) and other state agencies from publishing or circulating photographs of businessmen Bharat Ramji, Harish Ramji and Ashvin Ramji portraying them as criminal suspects in investigations linked to the acquisition and ownership of Land Reference Number 11895/50.

In orders issued on December 18, 2024, the court directed the DCI to immediately remove from its social media platforms and any other media all photographs and statements identifying the three as suspects in alleged forgery or related offences concerning the disputed land.

The orders will remain in force pending further directions on March 11, 2025.

The three moved to court seeking to restrain the DCI, the ODPP and other respondents from publishing their images or issuing statements portraying them as criminal suspects, arguing that the actions were unconstitutional, unlawful and prejudicial.

They contend that the dispute over the land—pitting Mombasa Cement Limited and the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) against the petitioners—was a civil matter that has already been conclusively determined by the courts.

According to court papers, the Court of Appeal in Nairobi Civil Appeal No. 590 of 2019, Bharat Ramji, Harish Ramji & Ashvin Ramji v Mombasa Cement Limited & National Social Security Fund*, held in a judgment delivered on December 15, 2023, that the petitioners are the lawful and duly registered owners of the property, having acquired it through a valid purchase and transfer for valuable consideration from NSSF.

The petitioners argue that despite the final determination by the Court of Appeal and its subsequent affirmation by the Supreme Court, the respondents have improperly escalated the matter into criminal investigations, in violation of their constitutional rights.