Noel Tata, trustees block Mehli Mistry’s return at Tata Trusts

Noel Tata, top trustees block Mehli Mistry’s re-appointent, deepens rift at Tata Trusts

BENGALURU/MUMBAI: Tata Trusts chairman Noel Tata and vice chairmen Venu Srinivasan and Vijay Singh have not approved the re-appointment of Ratan Tata's close confidant, businessman Mehli Mistry, as a permanent trustee—potentially plunging the philanthropic entities that control Tata Sons into turmoil, with the outgoing trustee almost certain to challenge the move in court.

On Tuesday, Noel Tata, TVS Motor Co. chair emeritus Srinivasan, and former defence secretary Singh voted against Mistry's candidature for trustee for life, according to an executive privy to the development.

The three other trustees—former Citibank India CEO Pramit Jhaveri, Mumbai lawyer Darius Khambata, and Pune-based philanthropist Jehangir H.C. Jehangir—voted in favour.

The split vote marks a sharp departure from the recent consensus-driven approach. Just last week, when Srinivasan was made a lifelong trustee, four trustees led by Mistry had described the move as a “procedural formality,” referring to a unanimous decision in October last year to grant themselves permanent positions. Under the Trusts' rules, appointments and removals require unanimous consent.

The opposition to Mistry presents two immediate challenges for Noel Tata, who took charge as chairman of Tata Trusts on 11 October 2024, less than 48 hours after Ratan Tata's death. First, Mistry is expected to legally contest the decision, given that a joint meeting of the Sir Ratan Tata Trust and the Sir Dorabji Tata Trust on 17 October last year had agreed to make all trustees permanent, the executive said.

Second, the standoff raises questions about how the Trusts will now achieve consensus. The divide has widened since 11 September, when three trustees—Jhaveri, Khambata, and Jehangir—voted with Mistry to remove Singh as their representative on the board of Tata Sons.

The four had expressed unhappiness over what they saw as a lack of transparency in Tata Sons' board decisions, leading to Singh's ouster—a move that exposed deep fissures within the promoter group of India's largest conglomerate, as first reported by Mint on 24 September.

Noel Tata and Srinivasan continue to serve as the Tata Trusts' representatives on the Tata Sons board.

A top Mumbai lawyer told Mint last week that legal recourse would be within the rights of a trustee who doesn't get reappointed. Senior Supreme Court lawyer H.P. Ranina said: “Hypothetically, if any trustee fails to get reappointed, then that means the other Trustees have violated the decisions taken on the 17 October 2024 board meeting. That trustee who fails to get reappointed has the right to take legal action against Tata Trusts."

Queries emailed to all the seven trustees were unanswered at the time of publishing.

(This is a developing story.)

Source: LiveMint
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