The board meeting of Tata Sons on Friday will focus on approving the accounts for the last financial year and outlining the operating plans for the current year, according to sources with knowledge of the agenda.
The meeting, which coincides with the first anniversary of the crash of an Air India Ahmedabad-London flight, is also expected to take forward discussions on issues raised by Tata Trusts Chairman Noel Tata, regarding the performance of the group’s loss-making businesses, its new ventures and the overall performance of the conglomerate, the sources said.
However, none of the contentious issues currently facing Tata Trusts and Tata Sons is on the formal agenda and they are unlikely to be taken up even under “other matters”, sources added.
Contentious issues
The continuance of Venu Srinivasan as a nominee director of the Trusts on the Tata Sons board is not expected to be discussed at the meeting.The matter is to be decided at the trustees’ level and can be taken up only when the boards of both Sir Dorabji Tata Trust and Sir Ratan Tata Trust are able to meet together. SRTT is currently unable to hold a meeting pending an inquiry by the Maharashtra Charity Commissioner into the composition of its board of trustees.
While discussions on the reappointment of Tata Sons Chairman N Chandrasekaran are in progress, they are unlikely to feature at Friday’s meeting. Instead, the focus is expected to be on the roadmap presented by him for the group’s future trajectory. Sources said some of the concerns raised by Noel Tata had already been addressed at a meeting on May 26. They also noted that there is time until February next year, when Chandrasekaran’s current term expires.
A third contentious issue—the proposed listing of Tata Sons, which has exposed sharp differences among trustees—is also unlikely to be decided at Friday’s meeting, although board members may discuss it informally, sources said.
“This is still something that the Trusts have to decide,” said the source.
Amicable compromise
Insiders with knowledge of the matter said that Noel Tata has been trying to bridge differences among trustees and arrive at an amicable resolution on several issues.
The trusts have also been embroiled in allegations raised by complainants, including trustee Venu Srinivasan, concerning alleged non-compliance with provisions of the Maharashtra Public Trusts Act governing the composition of trustee boards. Another complaint relates to the alleged unlawful transfer of 833 Tata Sons shares from a charitable trust to Naval Tata in 1989.
Tata Trusts has rejected both allegations. There was no reply to e-mails sent to Tata Trusts and Tata Sons.