Nearly two months after he was unceremoniously removed from the post of Tata Sons chief and replaced by Ratan Tata, Cyrus Mistry is taking the legal avenue to go after the group. A day after he quit all posts in the Tata Group, investment firms controlled by Mistry's family have reportedly filed a suit with the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) against Tata Sons.
According to PTI, the NCLT will hold the first hearing of the case — which pertains to "oppression and mismanagement of Tata Sons under Section 241 of the Companies Act" — on December 22.
The move seems in line with Mistry's missive when he was forced to quit Tata Group companies, and had then launched a movement to apparently bring more transparency in the companies. He had said then: "Having deeply reflected on where we are in this movement for cleaning up governance and regaining lost ethical ground, I think it is time to shift gears, up the momentum, and be more incisive in securing the best interests of the Tata Group."
Mistry had also said about the Tatas filing caveats against him: "A caveat is a notice filed by a party fearing legal action seeking notice before action. Tatas have filed caveats seeking notice from Cyrus Mistry fearing legal action. Cyrus has not filed any caveats."
What Mistry now hopes to achieve
It is still not clear whether Mistry wants to return as the head of Tata Sons or whether he wants it destroyed. However, given how he has talked of transparency and better governance within the company, it would be better to assume that he wants the former.
And given that Mistry had also warned the Tata Group of an $18-billion writedown if alleged fraudulent transactions of the group came to light, it stands to reason that he is trying to play a whistleblower, and might have been ousted before he could complete the task.
