Amid the tussle between the trustees of Tata Trusts that control India’s biggest business group, trustee Mehli Mistry has given a conditional approval for the reappointment of fellow trustees. This came as Venu Srinivasan’s term as trustee and vice-chairman of the Sir Dorabji Tata Trust (SDTT) ended on Monday after which he was reappointed for life, while Mistry’s term is also up for renewal.
According to a report in The Economic Times, Mistry, in an email to the trustees on October 21, said that all future trustee renewals should be approved unanimously, and if any future resolution was not unanimous, his own approval would be withdrawn. This assumes importance as well as demands reciprocity in the renewal of his term as well. The first renewal such a condition would apply to is Mistry’s own, the report added.
“For the avoidance of doubt, should any trustee elect not to pass this resolution reappointing Venu Srinivasan, or an identical unanimous resolution for all other trustees as and when their respective tenures expire, then in such event, I do not provide my formal approval for the reappointment of Venu Srinivasan. Needless to say, I do not expect such a situation to arise,” said Mistry, as mentioned in the report.
In the aftermath of the death of Ratan Tata, the long-serving patriarch of the group, reappointments would now be for life. Upon approval of the renewal of their current term unanimously, a trustee would be appointed without a fixed tenure. The first person to be appointed for life was Noel Tata, whose term was renewed for life this January.
Divisions within the Tata Sons board have persisted since September, when four trustees—Darius Khambata, Mehli Mistry, Pramit Jhaveri, and Jehangir Jehangir—voted to remove Vijay Singh as a board nominee, breaking precedent. They proposed Mehli Mistry for the board, but this nomination was blocked by Noel Tata, Venu Srinivasan, and Vijay Singh.
These events have created a tense atmosphere, with some trustees now aiming to avoid further conflict. The government is closely monitoring the situation, given Tata Group’s involvement in key national projects in electronics, defence, and other strategic sectors. In an unusual intervention, home minister Amit Shah and finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman met with key trustees and Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekaran, urging the group to resolve differences and ensure that internal disputes do not affect their functioning.
