Amit Shah, Sitharaman meet Tata Group trustees amid boardroom dispute

Tata Group trustees, including Noel Tata and N Chandrasekaran, met Home Minister Amit Shah and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman amid internal disputes over board appointments at Tata Sons

The top brass of the Tata Group met Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday in New Delhi to discuss an ongoing boardroom tussle at the venerable business house, according to PTI.

 

The meeting was attended by Tata Trusts Chairman Noel Tata, Vice-Chairman Venu Srinivasan, trustee Darius Khambata, and Tata Sons Chairman N Chandrasekaran. The development comes amid internal disputes over board appointments and governance at Tata Trusts.

 

What’s the dispute about?

 

According to the report, Tata Trusts has been witnessing infighting over board appointments at Tata Sons, the group's promoter that oversees the 156-year-old salt-to-semiconductors conglomerate, which itself comprises around 400 companies, including 30 listed entities.

 

The dispute stems from a meeting of six trustees on September 11 to discuss the reappointment of former defence secretary Vijay Singh as a nominee director on the Tata Sons board. However, four trustees — Mehli Mistry, Pramit Jhaveri, Jehangir H C Jehangir, and Khambata — opposed the move, leading to the resolution’s rejection.

Trustee divisions deepen

They then sought to nominate Mistry to the Tata Sons board, but Noel Tata and Srinivasan resisted, stressing transparency and adherence to Tata’s values. Subsequently, Singh resigned voluntarily, PTI reported.

 

The report added that Mistry, who is linked to the Shapoorji Pallonji family, which holds approximately 18.37 per cent of Tata Sons, feels he has been kept out of the loop on key matters.

 

Government’s concern over impact

 

"The primary question in front of the government, considering how significant and important the Tata Group is to the country's economy, is whether it can let an individual take control of it. The infighting among trustees of Tata Trusts has an impact on Tata Sons," a source told PTI.

 

Tata Trusts holds a 66 per cent stake in Tata Sons. Internal disputes could affect the conglomerate’s operations, which are valued at over $180 billion.