New Delhi: A war of words broke out between Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday over the widening leadership crisis in the Tata Group. Gandhi alleged that the conglomerate was being harmed under the BJP’s watch, while Sitharaman accused him of turning a corporate and legal issue into political propaganda.
At the core of the conflict is the reappointment of N. Chandrasekaran as Tata Sons chairman for a second five-year term. Tata Trusts chief Noel Tata has objected to the decision, saying it breaches the company’s rules. Tata Sons, however, insists that the appointment followed the law.
Rahul Gandhi’s Allegation
Gandhi claimed the Tata Group was facing serious damage and accused business leaders of remaining quiet.
“Tata is being criminally destroyed and no business leader dares say a word. How long will you stay silent? Until they own you?” he said.
He added that Indian companies were not the BJP’s property.
“We don’t. We will ensure justice for these crimes,” he said.
Sitharaman’s Response
The Finance Minister rejected his charges and asked him not to describe business disputes as criminal acts.
“Being the LoP, Rahul Gandhi, I suggest you refrain from politicising every issue. Also, casually labelling commercial and legal matters as criminal is unacceptable,” Sitharaman said on X.
She accused the Congress of having weakened private enterprise for decades.
“For decades, your party had smothered the spirit of the Indian entrepreneurs under the stifling ‘Licence-Quota Raj’ and inflicted poverty on crores of Indians,” she said.
She also advised Gandhi to stop making unfounded allegations.
“So Rahul ji, refrain from seeing ghosts everywhere,” she said, further alleging that Gandhi, his party and earlier Congress prime ministers had weakened the judiciary.
Sitharaman said the present government backed enterprise and job creation.
“Our policies have been tailored to enable enterprise, support industry and encourage investment,” she said, adding that political parties, governments and institutions must all work to strengthen industry, farmers and the youth.
Rahul Gandhi’s Counterattack
Gandhi replied by questioning the role of the Union Home Minister in the matter.
“Dear Mrs. Sitaraman, Which ‘legal and commercial matter’ required Tata Trusts and Tata Sons to be hosted at Amit Shah’s residence? When is crony number 1 going to appear in the game and which pieces of Tata is he going to get? Finally, all India’s businesses except 3-4 of your cronies, already hate all of you and don’t need any incitement,” he wrote.
What The Dispute Is About
Noel Tata, in a letter dated October 26 to Tata Sons’ company secretary Suprakash Mukhopadhyay, said the September 17 board meeting approved Chandrasekaran’s reappointment even though the original agenda did not clearly mention it, as reported by India Today.
He said the company had not given him audio and video recordings, final minutes, or a certified copy of the resolution despite repeated requests.
Noel Tata argued that the resolution was invalid because Tata Sons’ Articles of Association were not followed. He claimed that no Selection Committee was formed under Article 118 and that its recommendation was never placed before the board.
Noel Tata said the reappointment was invalid because the required votes from certain directors were not obtained. He also said the vote was treated as final even though some conditions had not been met.
He said the original agenda did not clearly mention Chandrasekaran’s reappointment, and neither did the revised agenda.
Calling the meeting recording the “only neutral record,” he objected to the company treating the resolution as final while the records were still disputed.
“It is unacceptable that, despite being a Director of the Company, I have not been furnished with certified true copy of the resolution,” he wrote, saying he had to rely on a publicly available version.
He has asked Tata Sons to share the meeting recordings, final minutes, voting details, notices, agenda versions, and regulatory filings within seven days. He has also asked the company not to take further action until the records are settled.