Ratan Tata steps in as interim chairman, reassures “stability of Tata Group” in a letter to employees

After the surprise ouster of Cyrus Mistry as chairman of Tata Sons, Ratan Tata has written to the employees of India's largest conglomerate, informing them that "in the interest of the stability of and reassurance to the Tata Group," he is returning as Chairman.
Ratan Tata, 78, will take over the position while the group seeks a permanent replacement. A committee has been given four months to find the new chairman.



"Tata Sons today announced that its Board has replaced Mr. Cyrus P. Mistry as Chairman of Tata Sons. The decision was taken at a board meeting held here today," the company said in a statement.

Tata Sons is the holding company of the sprawling tea-to-steel Tata Group, which spans more than 100 companies in as many countries. Its empire ranges from Jaguar Land Rover and steel mills to aviation and salt.

Mr Mistry, 48, took over from the company patriarch in December 2012, becoming the first chief of the conglomerate from outside the Tata family. He had been attempting to shake up the $100 billion conglomerate by changing the management structure to bring in new faces at senior levels.

Mistry belongs to Shapoorji Pallonji, which is the single largest shareholder in Tata Sons with 18.4 per cent stake. Shapoorji and Pallonji Group, the majority shareholder in the Tata Group, has termed Cyrus Mistry's ouster from Tata Sons as illegal. It said it will contest the move, adding that the decision to remove Mistry was not unanimous. This was confirmed by senior lawyer Mohan Parasaran.

Mr Mistry had been battling problems on a number of fronts in recent months, including a costly settlement with Japanese telecoms operator NTT Docomo and the sale of Tata Steel's loss-making business in Britain.

The Tata Group includes one of India's largest IT firms, Tata Consultancy Services, and the biggest vehicle maker, Tata Motors. But the group's revenue slipped 4.6 per cent for the financial year ended March to about $103 billion, hurt by global economic uncertainty, a crash in commodity prices and volatility in currencies, according to Bloomberg News. And it is currently trying to sell its loss-making British steel assets.