Tata Trusts, which owns 66% of Tata Sons, is challenging a board vote on Tata Sons Chairman Natarajan Chandrasekaran’s reappointment while pursuing a restructuring to keep the Tata Group’s holding company private.
The dispute puts leadership and the holding company’s future under scrutiny at one of India’s largest business groups. Tata Group reports more than $180 billion in revenue for 2024-25 and a workforce of more than 1 million across its companies.
At a Sept. 17 board meeting, directors considered a resolution to reappoint Chandrasekaran as chairman. Tata Trusts says the resolution was treated as passed even though one of its nominated directors opposed it. The trusts argue that Tata Sons’ rules require support from both trust-nominated directors, making the board’s decision invalid.
Tata Trusts Chairman Noel N. Tata addressed the company’s regulatory position in a statement to the board. He said the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) had rejected Tata Sons’ request to surrender its registration on Sept. 11 and urged the company to examine alternatives to a stock market listing.
The RBI classifies Tata Sons as an upper-layer nonbank financial company. The trusts’ proposed restructuring is intended to change that classification so the holding company can remain unlisted.
In its Sept. 28 restructuring proposal, Tata Trusts asked the board to consider and approve mergers bringing Tata Consulting Engineers and Tata Electronics Systems Solutions Private Limited into Tata Sons. The trusts said the plan would require the RBI’s prior no-objection clearance.
A separate shareholder decision is also outstanding. Tata Sons’ meeting notice scheduled a vote on Chandrasekaran’s reappointment as a director for Aug. 18. The Indian Express later reported that the annual meeting was adjourned for lack of quorum, leaving that vote pending.
