Harish Manwani and Anita Marangoly George, the two independent directors on Tata Sons’ six-member board, have emerged as important figures in the ongoing dispute over N Chandrasekaran’s reappointment as chairman. Both voted in favour of Chandrasekaran’s continuation at the September 17 board meeting, while Tata Trusts chairman Noel Tata voted against it.
Manwani, 73, is a former global chief operating officer of Unilever. He spent nearly four decades with the company before retiring in 2014 and later built an extensive career on corporate boards. He has been involved in major corporate situations, including Broadcom’s attempted takeover of Qualcomm, Elliott Management’s campaign at Nielsen and a shareholder dispute at Pearson.
Anita George, 66, comes from an institutional investment background. She was a senior executive at Canadian pension fund CDPQ, where she helped establish and build its India investment business. Her career included involvement with investments in companies including Azure Power and Edelweiss-linked businesses.
Moneycontrol reported that George’s record includes CDPQ’s investments in Azure Power and ECL Finance, but also noted that there is no evidence that she alone approved either investment. Both were institutional investment decisions involving wider processes.
The two directors have gained greater attention after the September 17 board meeting. Tata Sons said Chandrasekaran’s reappointment was approved by a majority, while Tata Trusts has challenged the validity of the decision under the company’s Articles of Association.
The developments have brought renewed focus on the role of independent directors when a company board and a controlling shareholder take different positions. Tata Trusts collectively owns about 66% of Tata Sons, while the company’s board includes two Trust-nominated directors and two independent directors.
