Tata Group Officials Meet Top Cabinet Minister Amid Boardroom Conflict

Four key Tata Group officials met a top Union Cabinet minister in New Delhi on Tuesday, sources told NDTV Profit. The meeting comes in the backdrop of a boardroom conflict that may adversely impact one of India's most-storied corporate houses.

Noel Tata, the chairman of Tata Trusts which holds the controlling stake in Tata Sons, was among those at the meeting. Venu Srinivasan and Darius Khambata, also Tata Trusts leaders, joined him, the persons privy to the development said.

The meeting follows a request by two Tata Trusts trustees seeking government intervention to resolve the internal rift, that has divided the conglomerate's leadership into two camps — one led by Noel Tata and other by Mehli Mistry.

The Mistry camp believes that it has been kept in the dark about key strategic decisions at Tata Sons, sources said. The Tata camp, however, believes it has taken decisions which benefit all shareholders.

The government, as per the persons privy to the development, wants Tata Trusts leadership to ease the internal tensions and find a resolution.

The Tata Trusts leaders, during the meeting, were expected to brief the minister on differences and issues related to the control of Tata Sons.

A crucial Tata Trusts board meeting, on Oct. 10, is likely aimed at discussing board appointments and corporate governance issues.

The strife intensified following a stormy meeting at Tata Trusts last month, which directly led to former defence secretary Vijay Singh having to exit the Tata Sons board. 

The government is seeking to intervene in this boardroom battle as any distress in the Tata Group can have severe consequences for the broader corporate sector, the sources who spoke to NDTV Profit said.

As part of the discussions with the government, the Tata Group representatives were also likely to discuss the mandatory listing of Tata Sons under Reserve Bank of India's guidelines. 

Tata Trusts is a set of two philanthropic trusts. Noel Tata took over as chairman of Tata Trusts after Ratan Tata passed away a year ago.

Tata Trusts also owns 66% stake in Tata Sons, which is the primary investments arm of the group. Through Tata Sons, the group remains invested in a whole host of subsidiaries, joint ventures and associate companies.

The Tata Sons board is currently led by N Chandrasekaran, executive chairman. Noel Tata, Venu Srinivasan, Saurabh Agrawal, Anita Marangoly George act as directors.