Neville Tata, son of Tata Trusts Chairman Noel Tata, was on Tuesday appointed as a trustee of the Sir Dorabji Tata Trust. The trust is the single-largest shareholder in Tata Sons, holding a 27.98 percent stake in the conglomerate’s holding company.
The move follows the resolution of a long-standing tussle between two factions—one led by Noel Tata and the other by the late Ratan Tata’s confidante Mehli Mistry—over the management of the trusts that collectively control 66 percent of Tata Sons. Mistry was voted out of key trusts and chose not to pursue any legal challenge, contrary to earlier expectations.
Neville, 32, who joined Noel’s business Trent in 2016 and has been leading the Zudio retail chain successfully, was unanimously appointed for a three-year term, effective Wednesday. The board also named Tata Group veteran Bhaskar Bhat, known for his leadership at Titan and as brand custodian, as a trustee. Additionally, Venu Srinivasan was appointed for three years as vice chairman, following recent Maharashtra government rules that capped trustee tenures, replacing lifetime appointments.
