The board of Tata Sons Pvt. Ltd. deferred a decision on granting a third term to Chairman Natarajan Chandrasekaran, people familiar said, in the latest sign that another leadership tussle could be brewing at India’s oldest conglomerate.
The board of directors at Tata Group’s holding company discussed the reappointment in a meeting on Tuesday but did not take a final call as the current term runs till February next year, said the people, who asked not to be identified as the information is not yet public.
The deferment follows a difference of opinion among board of directors regarding financial losses of certain business units, one person said. The Economic Times had reported this development earlier on Tuesday, days after the publication said Chandrasekaran was likely to get a third term.
The decision signals another round of power struggle at the coffee-to-cars group that was shaken a decade back when its patriarch Ratan Tata came back from retirement to oust his successor Cyrus Mistry, triggering the country’s worst corporate battle.
A spokesperson for Tata Sons did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.
Tata Group had a tumultuous time last year with multiple crises including a deadly Air India crash, a Jaguar Land Rover cyberattack, and renewed tensions at Tata Sons’ majority shareholder Tata Trusts, which is now led by Ratan’s half-brother Noel Tata.
If the 62-year-old Chandrasekaran—the first non-family, non-heir chairman at Tata Sons—eventually gets reappointed, it would provide leadership continuity for the group as it navigates headwinds across sectors.
For much of its 156-year history, Tata Group enjoyed unusually steady leadership, with chairmen drawn from within its trusted circle and transitions managed quietly. That calm was shattered in 2016, when Tata Sons abruptly ousted then-chairman Mistry in a boardroom coup led by Ratan Tata—a lifelong bachelor, who had no children to install in the role.
The episode also raised questions about succession planning and the balance of power between Tata Sons and Tata Trusts, the charitable collective that controls two-thirds of the holding company. Chandra’s appointment in 2017 was meant to steady the ship and restore confidence.
Under Chandra, Tata Group’s 15 largest listed companies almost doubled revenue and profits. His tenure has been defined by ambitious bets—from building India’s first homegrown semiconductor factory to steering cash-cow Tata Consultancy Services Ltd. through the disruption of artificial intelligence.
The chairmanship decision will also show how Noel Tata is asserting himself after he took over Tata Trusts in 2024.
Uncertainty is growing over how aggressively Noel plans to position himself and his children in the Tata power structure. His son, Neville, was appointed as a Tata Trusts trustee late last year while Mehli Mistry, an outspoken adversary, stepped down as a fellow trustee.