Tata Sons leadership row: Sharad Pawar calls for protection of Tata Group’s institutional values

Nationalist Congress Party SP chief Sharad Pawar on Tuesday waded into the Tata Sons leadership row calling for the Tata Grouprsquos trustled ownership structure and philanthropic legacy to be protectedHighlighting the grouprsquos foundational ethos established by Jamsetji Tata and carried forward by Sir Dorabji Tata and Sir Ratan Tata Pawar said in a statement that the primary vision of the industrial conglomerate was to ensure that wealth generated through business activities was channelled towards social welfare IANS reportedTata Trusts hold around 66 per cent in Tata SonsUnder this structure majority ownership in Tata Sons was entrusted to philanthropic trusts rather than concentrated in individual hands he saidMajor charitable entities including Sir Ratan Tata Trust and Sir Dorabji Tata Trust collectively hold approximately 66 per cent of the equity in Tata Sons Dividends from this majority stake support sectors including public health education research and rural livelihoodsPawar said Maharashtra is home to a significant part of this legacy with institutions of national importance established with support from the Tata trusts including Tata Memorial Hospital the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research TIFR the Tata Institute of Social Sciences TISS and the National Centre for the Performing Arts NCPA IANS reportedHe said any erosion of the trustsrsquo role could have a direct impact on such institutionsPawar raises concerns over September 17 board meetingReferring to the Tata Sons board meeting on September 17 Pawar highlighted the 41 vote in favour of a fiveyear continuation of Executive Chairman N Chandrasekaran and the move towards listing Tata Sons on stock exchanges Tata Trusts Chairman Noel Tata voted against the proposals while nominee director Venu Srinivasan voted in favourPawar said the companyrsquos Articles of Association provide special rights to directors nominated by Tata Trusts and argued that the September 17 resolution was therefore not legally valid Tata Trusts has separately made the same argument stating that its Articles require affirmative support from a majority of its nominee directors and that the 41 overall board vote did not satisfy that conditionCalls for dialogue and corporate governancePawar stressed that decisions concerning top corporate leadership should respect the rights granted to Tata Trustsrsquo nominee directors He said disputes over leadership should be resolved through constructive dialogue and lawful corporate processes rather than contentious conflict the news agency reportedHe also referred to the Supreme Courtrsquos earlier recognition of the special consent rights of Tata Trustsrsquo nominee directorsPawar said adherence to corporate governance standards respect for internal bylaws and preservation of the trustled ownership structure were fundamental to maintaining public trustPawar stresses Tata Grouprsquos social legacyIn his post on X Pawar said Jamsetji Tata and the Tata family had given industry a valuebased direction centred on social service hellip pictwittercom4dNklgm8tHmdash Sharad Pawar PawarSpeaks September 22 2026He said the social commitment and institutional role of the Tata Trusts should be preserved adding that leadership decisions must respect institutional processes and the role of the trustsPawar said preserving the legacy of the Tata Group was important not only to Maharashtrarsquos development but also to the countryrsquos broader progress and social lifeWith IANS inputs