R Venkataramanan To Leave Tata Trusts

R Venkataramanan, managing trustee of Tata Trusts that controls about two-thirds of Tata Group’s parent, will step down by March 31 at the end of his five-year term.

Venkataramanan had informed the chairman and trustees that he was considering other options, according to a media statement by Tata Trusts. The trustees, at a meeting today, accepted his request to be relieved. A committee comprising Tata Trusts Chairman Ratan Tata, and Vice Chairmen Vijay Singh and Venu Srinivasan will oversee operations and find a new chief executive.

Tata Trusts control Tata Sons Ltd., the parent of India’s largest conglomerate.

Last year, Venkataramanan was named in a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation alleging that he bribed unnamed government officials to obtain a flying permit for AirAsia India where he was a director. His name had also cropped up in a letter by Cyrus Mistry, who was unceremoniously removed as chairman of Tata Sons in 2016. Venkataramanan had denied the allegations.

The statement further said the trustees also appointed Noel N Tata, Chairman of Trent Ltd. and Managing Director of Tata International, and Jehangir HC Jehangir, a philanthropist who is currently "spearheading" the healthcare mission at Jehangir Hospital, Pune, as Trustees of Sir Ratan Tata Trust.