Mumbai: Noel Tata has voted against the reappointment of Venu Srinivasan and Vijay Singh as trustees of the Tata Education and Development Trust (TEDT), the largest corpus trust within the Tata Trusts, a move that widens the fault lines within one of India’s most powerful philanthropic structures. This is the first time that Noel has made his opposition to both of them clear.The last of the four votes cast on the matter was added to the decision that was already sealed after Mehli Mistry became the first person to oppose the extension of the two soon after the trusteeship renewal circular was issued.Under TEDT’s governance rules, reappointment requires unanimous consent among trustees – a threshold that had been closed before Mehli’s vote. Jahangir Mistry later voted against both men as well. Srinivasan and Singh voted for each other. The numbers were 3-1 against each of them.
Noel’s vote signals widening rift in Tata Trust since ’25
His tenure at the influential Tata Trusts, which supports projects in India and abroad, formally ended on Sunday, May 10. Noel Tata voted against Srinivasan and Singh, significantly reducing the influence of both men within the broader Tata Trusts ecosystem, even though they remained vice-chairmen of Sir Dorabji Tata Trust (SDTT) and Sir Ratan Tata Trust (SRTT) – the two top trusts that together hold a controlling stake in Tata Sons.The rift between Noel and the two deepened when Srinivasan and Singh publicly supported the listing of Tata Sons, which Noel had opposed. In an email to the CEO of Tata Trusts, Mehli said, “My affidavit in response to the board structure change report for SDTT explains the reasons why I decided to take such a decision.” According to the affidavit, Noel, Srinivasan and Singh had cast wrong votes against him in the SDTT. He also said that Srinivasan took part in the voting even though his tenure in SDTT had already ended. TEDT, with a corpus of Rs 5,600 crore, has been one of the most prominent Indian donors to Ivy League institutions including Harvard Business School and Cornell University, and owns and operates two cancer hospitals in India while supporting 17 others through grants.Following the Board transition, Noel will remain Chairman and Permanent Trustee of TEDT. Mehli continues in his role as permanent trustee, while Jahangir has a fixed-term trusteeship. With the departure of Srinivasan and Singh, TEDT has now reached the minimum limit of three trustees approved under its mandate. There was no response to an email sent to Noel. The vote is the latest and clearest manifestation of the rift within Tata Trusts that has been widening since late 2025. Established in 2008 by former Tata Trust chairman Ratan Tata, TEDT is perhaps the only trust within the Tata Trusts that can support social projects in India and abroad.
