Former Tata Sons chairman Cyrus Mistry broke his silence on the Supreme Court judgment in the long-drawn fight against Tata Sons. In a statement titled ‘Grateful for the opportunity – My conscience is clear’, Mistry said he is personally disappointed by the verdict, when every member of society looks to institutions, such as courts, to validate and endorse the appropriateness of his actions and beliefs. He added that he, however, ‘sleeps with a clear conscience’.
“Although I will no longer be able to influence the direction of governance of Tata Group directly, I hope the issues I have raised will cause deeper reflection and influence individuals concerned to catalyse change,” said Mistry, who fought an acrimonious public battle with the Tatas.
Reacting to the verdict which ruled in favour of Tata Group and dismissed all petitions, Mistry said he had the opportunity to work with a fantastic team of people from diverse backgrounds all bound together by a common value system embedded by the founders in Tata Group. “For that opportunity, I shall be eternally grateful,” he said in a statement.
Mistry said his aim at Tata was to ensure a robust board-driven system of decision-making and governance that is ‘larger than any one individual’. “A key focus was to enable the directors on various boards to discharge their fiduciary duties without fear or favour, while still ensuring shareholders’ views were reflected in strategy and actions. It continues to be my belief that it is by such a model that one would protect value for all stakeholders in Tata Sons and its various group companies.”
He said his performance was reviewed by nearly 50 independent directors across multiple Tata boards. Mistry said the performance metric and the appreciation for his initiatives speaks for itself.
“I am humbled by the continued support I have received from my former colleagues and other board members. All the successes we achieved was built on the efforts of a very talented team, including my executive management team, the managers and staff of Tata Sons, as well as the management teams in the Tata operating companies supported by their respective board members,” said Mistry.
Mistry added he had the opportunity to reflect on his actions over the past four years and looked at whether he could have handled the generational change in Tata leadership better. “In hindsight, while I may have had many imperfections, I have no doubt or erosion of conviction about the direction I chose, the integrity behind my actions and their consequences,” he said.
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