Tata Trusts Clash Over Tata Cons Listing as RBI Issues Loom

A confidential correspondence has brought to light an internal clash within the Tata Trusts regarding the future of Tata Cons, the Tata Group’s holding entity. Senior trustees from Sir Dorabji Tata Trust have leveled accusations against trustees Venu Shrinivasan and Vijay Singh, alleging that they have tried to undermine board proposals and ignored their fiduciary responsibilities. The letter, bearing the signatures of Noel N. Tata, Darius J. Khambata, Neil N. Tata and Bhaskar Bhatt, underscores the deepening rift over ownership structure and potential listing.

The trust’s policy to keep Tata Cons private dates back to a unanimous board decision in March 2024, reaffirmed in a July 2025 meeting where both Sir Dorabji and Sir Ratan Tata Trusts consented to maintain the unlisted status and to keep negotiations with the Reserve Bank of India ongoing. Senior trustees claim the July 2025 resolutions were never withdrawn, yet Shrinivasan and Singh allegedly pushed a public listing narrative without bringing the issue back to the trustees for a joint discussion.

Such public advocacy, the senior trustees warn, not only weakens the collective stance of the trusts but could also affect Tata Cons’ pending RBI filings and regulatory clearances. The dispute also references a September 28 proposal that advocated merging Tata Electronics Systems Solutions Private Ltd and Tata Consulting Engineers into Tata Cons, a move seen as a way to satisfy RBI’s NBFC norms without needing a market listing. The board had explicitly asked the trusts to examine all alternatives, and the trustees assert they have complied with that directive.