New Delhi, 28 Oct

Tata Trusts chairman Noel Tata and two trustees close to him have blocked the reappointment of Mehli Mistry, a long-time associate of the late Ratan Tata, as trustee, signalling a deepening divide within one of India’s most influential philanthropic bodies.

According to people familiar with the matter, TVS Motor chairman emeritus Venu Srinivasan and former defence secretary Vijay Singh sided with Noel Tata in opposing Mistry’s return after his three-year term ended on Tuesday.

In contrast, trustees Pramit Jhaveri, Darius Khambata, and Jehangir HC Jehangir, believed to be aligned with Mistry, supported his reappointment, marking an unprecedented split in the Trusts’ decision-making process.

The two camps, Noel Tata with Srinivasan and Singh on one side, and Mistry with Jhaveri, Khambata and Jehangir on the other, represent the emerging power blocs within the Tata Trusts, which control a majority stake in Tata Sons, the holding company of the Tata Group.

Tensions have been building since September, when Mistry’s group voted to remove Singh as Tata Trusts’ representative on the Tata Sons board. However, in a twist last week, Srinivasan was made a lifelong trustee through a unanimous decision, a move that Mistry’s faction is now expected to challenge.

Sources said Mistry may contest the decision in court, arguing that a joint resolution passed in October 2024 had agreed to make all trustees permanent.

The 17 October, 2024, resolution stated that trustees would be reappointed automatically upon the expiry of their term, without tenure limits. Those voting otherwise would be deemed in “breach of commitment” and “not fit to serve” on the Trusts.

If challenged, this could open the door to revisiting all key decisions made since, including Noel Tata’s own appointment to the Tata Sons board, a source said.

The dispute has reportedly drawn government attention. Earlier this month, Noel Tata and Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekaran met Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman amid escalating tensions within the Trusts. The government is understood to have urged both sides to resolve the conflict privately, given the Tata Group’s significance to the Indian economy.

Tata Trusts, the umbrella body overseeing entities such as the Sir Dorabji Tata Trust and Sir Ratan Tata Trust, holds a 66 per cent stake in Tata Sons, the cornerstone of the 156-year-old Tata Group, which comprises nearly 400 companies, including 30 listed ones.