Hindustan Times ST (Mumbai) - Live
Ratan Tata: Have no plans to step down from Trusts
MUMBAI: Tata Sons interim chairman Ratan N Tata has no immediate plans to step down from the chairmanship of Tata Trusts.
A statement issued by Tata Sons clarified this on Friday, adding that a process was “being put in place for leadership succession inthetrustsinthefuture,toenable an ordered and smooth transition of leadership”.
Tata Trusts is the principal shareholder of the $103-billion Tata Sons, holding two-thirds of its equity.
The clarification came in response to a media report quoting former director RK Krishna Kumar as saying that Tata would resign from chairmanship of the trusts,washinghishandsof active involvement in the functioning of thegroupcompaniesafterhisterm as its interim chairman ends.
Tata Sons has constituted a search panel to appoint a new chairman for the conglomerate by the end of February 2017. Tata would be the interim chairman till then.
The issue assumessignificance in the light of ousted group chairman Cyrus Mistry claiming that thecharitableorganisation–onthe strength of its 66% shareholding in Tata Sons – has a crucial say in theoperationsof groupcompanies.
However, this contention has been strongly denied by Tata Sons and senior executives. There is no questionof suchinterference,Tata PowerdirectorNawshirMirzasaid, adding: “They (the trusts) are not on the board of operating companies. How can they decide on individual company issues?”