Tata internal discord: Amit Shah, Sitharaman have a firm message – ‘do what it takes’ to restore stability
Tata Trusts’ infighting and internal discord has prompted the Centre to step in with Home minister Amit Shah and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman meeting top Tata Group leaders in Delhi on Tuesday.According to an ET report, in the meeting which lasted around 45 minutes, the message from the government was clear: stability needs to be restored. The report said that the government conveyed a firm signal to Tata group’s senior leadership regarding maintaining stability at Tata Trusts and preventing internal conflicts from affecting Tata Sons, which is India’s highest-valued business group.
Tata infighting: Why the government is stepping in
The crucial meeting involved Shah and Sitharaman engaging with four key Tata representatives: Tata Trusts Chairman Noel Tata, Vice-Chairman Venu Srinivasan, Tata Sons Chairman N Chandrasekaran and Trustee Darius Khambata. The interaction aimed to safeguard the group’s stability.As reported by ET earlier, the meeting between two senior cabinet ministers and Tata group leaders was aimed at addressing the ongoing leadership tensions within Tata Trusts and discussions about Tata Sons’ public listing. The Tata officials reportedly received suggestions to implement stringent measures, and take stern action.The suggested actions included the authority to dismiss any trustee whose internal activities could potentially disrupt the group’s operations.The ministers reportedly expressed serious concerns about the ongoing discord and supported stringent measures against trustees deemed responsible for creating disruptions.The ET report said that the government has expressed significant apprehension about the possibility of internal disputes within the Trusts affecting the operations of Tata Sons and its subsidiary companies.The underlying communication appears to suggest that, given the Trusts’ controlling stake in Tata Sons, there exists a “public responsibility”, considering the organisation’s scale, strategic importance and economic impact. Furthermore, it emphasises that any disagreements within the Trusts ought to be addressed privately and through internal channels.The discussions also included the RBI’s directive for listing of upper-layer NBFCs, including Tata Sons, and addressed liquidity options for Shapoorji Pallonji Group, the second-largest stakeholder. However, whether the government provided any specific guidance during the meeting remains uncertain, the ET report said.Following the meeting, the four Tata executives reportedly conducted a short internal consultation before departing for Mumbai. They are scheduled to attend a two-day commemorative programme observing the first death anniversary of Ratan Tata, who died on October 9 last year.
