In Mumbai, on February 24, the board of Tata Sons postponed a decision on reappointing Natarajan Chandrasekaran for a third term as Chairman, according to sources, signaling potential differences within the holding company of the conglomerate involved in coffee, cars, and software.
According to sources, Noel Tata, Chairman of Tata Trusts, which owns two-thirds of the corporate group, set several conditions for Chandrasekaran's reappointment, which ultimately led to the decision being postponed.
Chandrasekaran's term ends in February 2027, and the board of Tata Sons was discussing extending it when Noel Tata raised concerns, according to sources.
They said Noel Tata expressed concerns about losses in certain group companies, and the conditions also include Tata Sons adding debt, which would force the group to list on stock exchanges.
Sources said Noel Tata also opposed the listing of Tata Sons and wanted a written commitment.
The meeting, held at group headquarters Bombay House, was lengthy, and the discussion on reappointment was extensive, adding that none of the other four directors, including Venu Srinivasan, Harish Manwani, Anita George, and Saurabh Agrawal, had any objections.
According to sources, Chandrasekaran explained the challenges in making a firm commitment against listing, explaining that regulations would take their own course.
Chandrasekaran, 62, received the backing of several board members who felt that losses in one group company should not overshadow the group's overall performance or the chairman's contributions over the years. Some directors suggested a vote, but Chandrasekaran urged a postponement.
According to RBI regulations, 15 entities, including Tata Sons, were given a deadline of September 30, 2025, to list.
In response, Tatas have applied to surrender their core investment company (CIC) registration to avoid the listing mandate, but the central bank is reportedly yet to make a decision on the application, and Governor Sanjay Malhotra has said that an entity can continue doing business until its registration is cancelled.
At one point during the deliberations, there was a proposal to put the reappointment proposal to a vote, the sources said, adding that this is where Chandrasekaran requested a deferral of any decision on the item.
"I recommended that it be deferred because that was the request by one of the directors," Chandrasekaran told reporters while emerging from the building in the evening.
Declining to specify what transpired at the board meeting, he said "nothing changes" for Tata Sons.
There is no clarity on when the next board meeting will be held, while sources indicated that it will be held once some solutions are found.
Chandrasekaran joined Tata Group in 1987, and rose through the ranks to become the CEO of Tata Consultancy Services – the IT firm of the Tata Group – before taking charge as Tata Sons' chairman in February 2017.
Chandrasekaran is widely credited with steering the diversified conglomerate through a period of restructuring and consolidation. Under him, Tata Group's 15 largest listed companies almost doubled revenue and profits.
His tenure has been marked by a series of high-stakes strategic bets - from advancing plans to establish India's first homegrown semiconductor fabrication facility to taking over of loss-making Air India and steering cash engine Tata Consultancy Services through the sweeping disruption triggered by artificial intelligence.
Founded in 1868 in Mumbai by Parsi industrialist Jamsetji Nusserwanji Tata, the Tata Group remained under the leadership of the Tata family for most of its 156-year history. In 2012, Ratan Tata stepped down as chairman, handing over the reins to Cyrus Mistry of the Shapoorji Pallonji Group.
A dramatic boardroom fallout in 2016 led to Mistry's abrupt removal by Tata Sons, in a move widely seen as a coup engineered by Ratan Tata. A lifelong bachelor with no children, Ratan Tata had no direct heir within the family to succeed him.
Mistry died in 2022, but the Shapoorji Pallonji Group continues to hold an 18 per cent stake in Tata Sons, making it the largest minority shareholder and has also been pressing for a listing. Following Ratan Tata's death in 2024, his half-brother Noel Tata was appointed Chairman of Tata Trusts, the principal shareholder of Tata Sons.
Tata Trusts' stake in Tata Sons gives it a decisive influence over key strategic and governance decisions at the apex holding company of the Tata Group.
Tata Sons, in turn, oversees a portfolio of around 30 operating companies spanning various sectors, such as consumer goods, automobiles, information technology and aviation. Major group entities include Jaguar Land Rover, Tata Consultancy Services, Tata Motors and Air India.
The ownership structure places Tata Trusts at the centre of governance for the diversified conglomerate, with Tata Sons functioning as the principal investment holding and promoter entity for group companies.
The latest set of differences comes months after top-level issues at Tata Trusts over differences between trustees were settled with the exit of one Mehli Mistry. Noel's son Neville has also been gearing up to get inducted into some trusts within the Tata Trusts.
