Tata Group stocks tumble by up to 8% amid Tata Sons listing, Chandrasekaran row; Tata Chemicals, TCS among losers
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Tata Group stocks witnessed sharp volatility on Friday, with Tata Chemicals, Tata Investment Corporation, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles and Tata Consultancy Services falling up to 8% in early trade. Investor sentiment was dented by tensions within the Tata Trusts over the proposed listing of Tata Sons and the reappointment of N. Chandrasekaran as chairman.
Among the group stocks, Tata Chemicals was the top loser, falling 7.86% to ₹719.05, while Tata Investment Corporation declined 3.66% to ₹692.70. Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles slipped 3% to ₹305.20, while TCS fell 3.01% to ₹2,129.90. Tata Technologies declined 2.5%, while Tata Teleservices fell 2.46%. Tata Power, Tata Steel and Tata Consumer Products also traded lower.
Among other group stocks, Tata Elxsi fell 1.25%, while Tata Communications declined 0.29%. Titan and Trent were largely flat. Tata Coffee, however, gained 3.57% to ₹344.80.
What fuelled selling in group stocks
The selling pressure came after the Tata Sons board, at its meeting on September 17, approved the beginning of the process for an initial public offering (IPO) and extended Chandrasekaran’s tenure for a third term, bringing two contentious issues at the group holding company into sharper focus. Chandrasekaran’s current second term was due to end in February 2027.
His decision in August not to seek reappointment had opened another leadership transition at the group, even as the Tata Sons board, except Noel Tata, wanted Chandrasekaran to continue.
The board approved a five-year extension for Chandrasekaran, despite the opposition of Tata Trusts chairman Noel Tata. According to sources, Trusts vice chairman Venu Srinivasan countered Noel Tata’s veto, allowing the issue to go to a board vote. Srinivasan, along with directors Harish Manwani, Anita Marangoly George and CFO Saurabh Agrawal, had earlier supported Chandrasekaran’s continuation.
Noel Tata opposes Tata Sons listing
The proposed Tata Sons listing has also become a key point of contention within the group. Noel Tata has urged the Tata Sons board to look beyond a public listing, arguing that the Reserve Bank of India’s latest communication does not require the company to pursue an IPO.
The Tata Trusts chairman outlined his objections in a detailed statement at the board meeting, days after the RBI rejected Tata Sons’ request to surrender its NBFC registration.
A public issue of Tata Sons at this point would be detrimental to the company and its shareholders, given the “huge losses” of Air India and Tata Digital, Noel Tata said at the board meeting. He said rushing into a public offering, while presenting investors with a consolidated financial picture that has not yet matured, would not serve the interests of the company, its shareholders or the Indian capital markets.
“An offering made in haste, into a market presented with a consolidated picture that has not been allowed to mature, would serve neither the company, nor its shareholders, nor even the shareholder that seeks liquidity, nor the standing of the Indian capital markets,” he said in a statement.
Noel Tata said the listing process could take “several months if not years”, given the work involved. This would include changes to the Articles of Association and the shareholder approvals required for them, along with preparing and restating consolidated financial statements to the standards required for an offer document.
The company would also need to appoint intermediaries, complete due diligence and resolve valuation issues, he said.
The Tata Trusts chairman also flagged the financial commitments of recently acquired and newly formed subsidiaries, including in civil aviation, as well as the losses and borrowings that would emerge in a consolidated presentation.
Noel Tata said that even if the company ultimately has to list and listing is the only option, Tata Sons should be given three years to comply, starting from the date of the Reserve Bank of India’s communication on September 11, 2026.
He referred to the RBI’s scale-based regulatory framework, under which an upper-layer non-banking financial company is ordinarily given three years to list.
“The three-year period should start now,” Noel Tata said.
The board should therefore seek at least three years from the date of the communication, or until September 2029, and explain why the additional time is needed, he said.
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