Ahead of the August 13 board meeting of Tata Trusts and the August 18 board meeting of Tata Sons, Vijay Singh, a vice-chairman of Tata Trusts, has stepped down as a trustee of the Sir Ratan Tata Trust (SRTT), one of the two key charitable trusts that control the Tata Group.
Singh, a former defence secretary, will, however, continue as a trustee of the Sir Dorabji Tata Trust (SDTT), the other principal Tata charity, according to a source aware of the development.
Singh’s current term as an SRTT trustee ends on August 14, and he has decided not to seek another term, the source told TNIE on Tuesday.
His departure comes at a time when regulatory restrictions on SRTT’s ability to hold trustee meetings have complicated decision-making ahead of Tata Sons’ annual general meeting on August 18. SRTT has approached the Maharashtra Charity Commissioner seeking relief from the restrictions, warning that their continuation could affect nearly ₹400 crore in philanthropic grants and disrupt its participation in the Tata Sons AGM.
SRTT and SDTT together hold 52% of the 66.4% stake held by Tata’s charitable trusts in Tata Sons, the holding company of the $180-billion Tata Group.
Singh’s exit also comes amid differences within the trusts over several issues, including the proposed listing of Tata Sons, the continuation of group chairman N Chandrasekaran for a third term and regulatory proceedings affecting SRTT.
The trusts can nominate up to one-third of the directors on the Tata Sons board, subject to a maximum of three. Since September last year, however, the trusts have had only two representatives on the board — chairman Noel Tata and vice-chairman Venu Srinivasan.
The Tata Sons AGM is expected to consider the reappointment of Chandrasekaran as a director. His continuation as executive chairman of the Tata Group is dependent on his remaining on the Tata Sons board.
The Maharashtra Charity Commissioner in May issued an ex-parte direction asking SRTT to defer a trustee meeting scheduled for May 16. The direction followed a complaint alleging that the composition of SRTT’s board did not comply with an amendment to the Maharashtra Public Trusts Act, which limits permanent trustees to 25% of a trust’s board.
SRTT had argued that the amendment, which came into effect in September 2025, was prospective and did not apply to perpetual appointments made before it came into force. The Charity Commissioner subsequently clarified that the restrictions applied only to SRTT.