Tata Trusts Chief Defends Move Amid Bias Allegations

Tata Trusts CEO is once again in the news as he defends himself after being accused of being biased. A disagreement has broken out at Tata Trusts. Trustees, Venu Srinivasan and Vijay Singh, have claimed that CEO Siddharth Sharma has been biased in a conflict over internal rules and communication.

What exactly happened?

The dispute is in respect of the Bai Hirabai Jamsetji Tata Trust. Former trustee Mehli Mistry questioned the appropriateness of some members in relation to the requirements of the trust, namely, they had to be of the Zoroastrian religion and reside in Mumbai. It was observed that Srinivasan and Singh failed to fulfill these requirements, and Sharma allegedly encouraged them to resign. Srinivasan resigned, but Singh remained. Both men, subsequently, asserted that the CEO had withheld a legal opinion of 26 years ago, which they had reason to believe upheld their right to remain as trustees.

This proved to be worse when Sharma wrote a detailed letter to the trustees, including Chairman Noel Tata, to give his side. In the letter, which was dated April 7, he said that he was informed that Srinivasan and Singh were not eligible as per the rules. He said that he had discussed with Noel Tata on April 2, that they both held that an old legal opinion did not amount to a formal court order. They chose not to force the two trustees off but to request them to resign voluntarily in order to avoid legal complications in the future.

After Statement

Sharma further stated that he had talked to Srinivasan and Singh on April 2, a day prior to Mehli Mistry requesting Maharashtra Charity Commissioner to look into the issue. The CEO insists that his decisions were based on prudent governance and were not biased towards him.

The case has brought into focus the manner in which Tata Trusts has been operated, particularly with respect to adherence to legal advice and rules. With the involvement of regulators, the organization is waiting to find out how the situation will be solved.

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