The Tata Sons board has approved a fresh five-year term for N Chandrasekaran as executive chairman of the Tata Group, reversing his decision last month not to seek reappointment, according to sources cited by Reuters and news agency ANI.The reappointment was approved at a Tata Sons board meeting held in Mumbai on Thursday. Chandrasekaran’s current five-year term is due to end in February 2027.The latest development comes after the Reserve Bank of India rejected Tata Sons’ application to surrender its registration as a non-banking financial company (NBFC) on September 11, reviving the regulatory requirement for the company to pursue a listing.Tata Sons was classified by the RBI as an “upper layer” NBFC in September 2022 under its scale-based regulatory framework, a designation that required the company to list within three years. The deadline lapsed in September 2025 while its application to deregister as a core investment company remained pending.Chandrasekaran had said last month that he would not seek another term. His decision had triggered discussions within Tata Sons over succession and the future leadership of the conglomerate.
Reappointment comes after succession debate
The development comes after Tata Trusts had signalled interest in a change at the top.Tata Trusts chairman Noel Tata had wanted the Tata Sons board to formally begin the process of finding a successor to Chandrasekaran, whose current term ends on February 20, 2027.According to the sources, Noel Tata believed Chandrasekaran’s decision not to seek another term should stand. Sir Dorabji Tata Trust had also indicated the need to constitute a selection panel to identify Chandrasekaran’s successor.Also read: Trusts keen on change amid buzz that Chandra may be asked to stay onTata Trusts had unanimously resolved last year to recommend extending Chandrasekaran’s tenure by another five years. However, at a February board meeting, four directors supported the extension while Noel Tata opposed it.Chandrasekaran subsequently wrote to the Tata Sons board saying the proposal to extend his tenure had not secured unanimous support, with one board member opposing it.Noel Tata, who chairs Tata Trusts, which along with affiliated trusts controls about 66 per cent of Tata Sons, voted against Chandrasekaran’s reappointment on Thursday, but the resolution was approved by a majority, according to sources.The Shapoorji Pallonji Group, which holds roughly 18 per cent of Tata Sons, has favoured a listing of the holding company.As a consequence of Thursday’s vote, the chairman-selection process initiated by the Sir Dorabji Tata Trust is expected to be paused or discontinued, according to sources.
No decision on Tata Sons listing
As per ANI, while the board approved Chandrasekaran’s reappointment, no decision has been taken on the listing of Tata Sons.The listing question has gained fresh significance after the RBI rejected Tata Sons’ application to surrender its NBFC registration. Tata Sons had sought to avoid the listing requirement by seeking deregistration as a core investment company.The future structure of Tata Sons had been among the issues discussed in the context of the leadership transition.Under Tata Sons’ articles of association, a five-member panel is required to recommend a candidate for chairman, with the formal appointment made by the Tata Sons board. Three members are to be jointly appointed by the Sir Dorabji Tata Trust and the Sir Ratan Tata Trust, while the remaining two are nominated by the Tata Sons board.The board’s Thursday decision means the succession process that had been under discussion following Chandrasekaran’s announcement is no longer immediately required for the chairmanship.Chandrasekaran has served as chairman of Tata Sons since 2017 and was previously reappointed for a second five-year term.Tata Sons had also been exploring potential succession candidates following Chandrasekaran’s planned exit, with names including Tata Steel chief executive TV Narendran, Tata Sons group chief financial officer Saurabh Agrawal and National Stock Exchange chief executive Ashish Chauhan being discussed.An eventual Tata Sons listing could rank among the largest IPOs in Indian history. A 1 per cent stake sale has been estimated at Rs 15,000-20,000 crore, implying an overall valuation of around Rs 20 lakh crore, or roughly $230 billion, for Tata Sons.
