CORPORATE
Tata Trusts row set to intensify with Mehli Mistry failing to get reappointed
- IBJ Bureau
- Oct 29, 2025
Mehli Mistry is set to exit the Tata Trusts after a majority of trustees voted against extending his term on the boards of the Sir Dorabji Tata Trust and the Sir Ratan Tata Trust. His three-year tenure ended on October 28.
Reports indicate that a circular resolution that had been circulated earlier had resulted in three of the six trustees – Chairman Noel Tata, Venu Srinivasan and Vijay Singh – opposing Mr Mistry’s reappointment. The remaining trustees – Darius Khambata, Pramit Jhaveri and Jehangir H C Jehangir – had supported his continuation. The split decision ruled out the extension of Mr Mistry’s term.
Mr Mistry, who had joined both the trusts in 2022, has been regarded as a close associate of the late Ratan Tata. The Sir Dorabji Tata Trust and the Sir Ratan Tata Trust together hold the largest share in Tata Sons and play a central role in board nominations and governance across the Tata Group.
Differences among trustees have widened in recent months. In September, a proposal to reappoint Vijay Singh as a nominee director on the Tata Sons board did not receive unanimous support, and he subsequently stepped down. Mr Mistry was among the trustees who had opposed Mr Singh’s continuation. That decision is seen to have set the stage for the current outcome.
There is also ongoing disagreement within the trusts over the interpretation of a resolution passed in October 2024 regarding trustees’ tenure. The resolution has allowed for reappointment without a fixed limit, which some trustees view as establishing the basis for life-long tenure. Others have argued that reappointments are subject to approval for each term.
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