A year after the death of Ratan Tata, the Tata Group - a gigantic Indian salt-to-steel conglomerate which he steered into a global, modern, technologically advanced enterprise - finds itself facing a plethora of crises.
The business empire, which owns iconic British brands such as Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) and Tetley Tea and makes the iPhone for Apple in India, is, yet again, a divided house.
For months, a boardroom power battle between trustees has exposed internal rifts that forced the government to step in and prevent a repeat of the very public legal tangle that engulfed the Tata empire in 2016, when its former chairman Cyrus Mistry was ousted from the group.
While ministers in Delhi appeared to have brokered an uneasy truce weeks ago, latest reports suggest that Mehli Mistry, a close confidant of Ratan Tata and a trustee on the board of Tata Trusts, has been ousted from his position. The BBC has not been able to independently verify this.
Prof Mircea Raianu of the University of Maryland, who's written a seminal history of the corporation, views the tussle as a resurfacing of unresolved business - or the core question of who runs the show at Tata, and how much control majority shareholders (the philanthropic arm Tata Trusts, which owns 66% of the parent company, Tata Sons) can wield in making business decisions.
The Tata Group is uniquely structured, with controlling shares of the unlisted commercial holding company (Tata Sons) vested in a philanthropic organisation (Tata Trusts). This structure has led to governance issues given its dual non-profit and commercial objectives.
The latest rift comes at a time when the Tatas are facing severe business headwinds. They are trying to expand into new growth areas like semiconductors and electric vehicles, as well as attempting to revive Air India - the ailing carrier they bought from the government in 2021 - following a tragic crash earlier this year.
The Tatas have not publicly commented on the discord, but it is widely reported to stem from differences among trustees over board nominations, funding approvals, and the public listing of Tata Sons - the holding company of 26 publicly listed Tata firms with a market capitalisation of some $328bn.
A source close to the Tata Group told the BBC on condition of anonymity that some of the trustees' desire for greater influence in making strategic decisions at Tata Sons and picking nominees on its board is at the centre of the tussle. Tata Trusts has three nominees on the Tata Sons board.
The SP Group, the largest minority shareholder in Tata Sons, with an 18% stake, desires a public listing for Tata Sons. While the former has been advocating hard for it, most Tata trustees are against the idea, fearing it would dilute their decision-making capacity and expose Tata Sons to quarterly market pressures.
However, the SP Group labels the prospective public listing as a moral and social imperative that would unlock value for Tata shareholders and promote transparency in governance.
Amid these troubles, the tenure of N Chandrasekaran, the chairman of Tata Sons, has reportedly been extended. While the current challenges impact him, he continues his work as there's no rift within the board but rather between the trustees.
The Tata Group is no stranger to crises. Previous conflicts around the leadership and direction of the company highlight ongoing challenges faced by this prestigious business house.
As the Tata Group navigates internal divisions amid external pressures, it remains to be seen how it will emerge and adapt in a rapidly changing business landscape.
