MUMBAI: Sir Dorabji Tata Trust (SDTT) on Monday filed its response with Maharashtra Charity Commissioner (MCC) to complaints lodged by trustees Venu Srinivasan and Vijay Singh, meeting the extended October 19 deadline for its submission.The complaints sought an inquiry into SDTT’s administration and governance, including the appointments of Noel Tata as a perpetual trustee and his son, Neville Tata, as a trustee. They further alleged that Srinivasan was excluded from the decision-making process surrounding Neville’s appointment and questioned the involvement of SDTT and Noel in the commercial and strategic affairs of Tata Sons.A Tata Trusts spokesperson confirmed the response had been filed but declined to share the contents of the submission, which runs into dozens of pages.MCC had initially directed SDTT to file its response by October 12, but granted the trust additional time, extending the deadline to October 19.The complainants had also sought interim directions, including the suspension or removal of trustees from SDTT, restrictions on Noel’s participation in matters concerning Tata Sons, and a bar on his exercising voting rights on behalf of SDTT at Tata Sons shareholder meetings. SDTT is the largest shareholder in Tata Sons, with a 28% stake, followed by Sir Ratan Tata Trust (SRTT) with 24%.MCC had barred SRTT from holding trustee meetings until an investigation into separate complaints filed by Srinivasan is completed. The latest complaints, filed on Sept 25 by Srinivasan and Singh, followed disagreements over the future of Tata Sons, including whether the company should remain unlisted and how liquidity should be provided to minority shareholder Shapoorji Pallonji (SP) Group.Srinivasan had alleged that Noel had taken a direct role in identifying, negotiating and facilitating liquidity for the SP Group through the monetisation of Tata Sons shareholding.
