A senior minister in the Narendra Modi-led government has pushed back against opposition leader Rahul Gandhi's social media posts suggesting the government is involved in a power struggle at the $185 billion Tata Group. Gandhi accused the government of allowing the 158-year-old conglomerate to be "criminally destroyed" and questioned why senior company executives met a senior minister at his residence last year. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman responded by accusing Gandhi of politicizing a corporate and legal dispute.
The conglomerate is now caught in an internal power struggle between Tata Sons Pvt., the holding company led by Chairman Natarajan Chandrasekaran, and Tata Trusts, which holds 66% of the company and is headed by Noel Tata. The conflict centers on Chandrasekaran's reappointment, broader governance questions, and whether Tata Sons should list on the stock market. Tata Sons and Tata Trusts did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The exchange is part of a wider clash between Gandhi and the government. Gandhi is leading protests against the Election Commission over its review of voter rolls, and Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal has also challenged his allegations. Gandhi has long made the government's ties to India's wealthiest businessmen a central line of attack, previously targeting Gautam Adani and Mukesh Ambani.
Under Chandrasekaran, who has led the group since 2017, Tata has aligned its expansion with the government's push to make India a global manufacturing hub. The group is a key supplier to Apple Inc. and has invested heavily in semiconductors, electric vehicles, batteries, renewable energy and defense. Chandrasekaran was reappointed for five years in September despite objections from Noel Tata, who later questioned the process. The Reserve Bank of India has classified Tata Sons as an upper-layer non-banking financial company, subjecting it to listing requirements, and Noel opposes a listing, arguing it could weaken the group's charitable ownership structure.
Source: Bloomberg Markets · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing