Tata Group says not yet received any formal request from SP Group for separation

Tata Group on Thursday said it has not received any formal request or proposal from the SP Group till date regarding the latter's desire to separate from it.

On September 22, the SP Group had issued a statement saying it is time to separate from the Tatas after the Supreme Court disallowed it to pledge any Tata Sons shares.

"This statement has resulted in considerable confusion and speculation in the media," Tata Sons said in a statement.

Tata Sons is the holding company of the Tata Group, in which the SP Group is the single largest minority shareholder with an 18.37 per cent stake.

"Tata Group states that they have till date not received any formal request or proposal from the SP Group on this matter," the statement said.

In any event, since the matter is sub-judice before the Supreme Court, Tata Sons said it "will wait for the court proceedings to resume, which are scheduled for October 28".

Tata Sons had objected to the SP Group's plans to raise funds by pledging shares of Tata Sons.

However, the Mistry family had stated that it was "in the midst of raising funds against the security of their personal assets to meet the crisis arising from the global pandemic". The Mistry family-held SP Group had alleged that Tata Sons amplified its institutional efforts to suppress and inflict irreparable harm on the SP Group, in the midst of a global crisis triggered by the COVID pandemic.

The SP Group said the action by Tata Sons to block the "crucial fund raise, without any heed for the collateral consequences, is the latest demonstration of their vindictive mindset".

It said the current situation has forced the Mistry family to sit back and reflect on the past, present and possible future for all stakeholders. "The past oppressive actions and the latest vindictive move by Tata Sons that impact the livelihoods of the wider SP Group community lead to the inexplicable conclusion that the mutual co-existence of both groups at Tata Sons would be infeasible," the SP Group had said.