Nusli Wadia withdraws defamation suit against Ratan Tata, others

Businessman Nusli Wadia on Monday withdrew his defamation suit against Tata group patriarch Ratan Tata a week after the court asked the parties to resolve their differences like "mature people".

A bench headed by Chief Justice S A Bobde allowed Wadia to withdraw the petition, which sort Rs 3000 crore in damages, after the court said Tata and others had no intention to defame him, news agency PTI reported.

Wadia, chairman of the Bombay Dyeing group, filed a criminal defamation case in 2016 after he was voted out of the boards of three Tata Group companies. He alleged that he was removed for backing Cyrus Mistry, who was ousted as chairman of Tata Sons.

"You both are mature people. You both are leaders of industry. Why don't you both settle the matter. Why don't you sit together and resolve your differences. Do you all need to pursue litigation like this?" a bench headed by Chief Justice S A Bobde told him on January 6.

The bench on Monday told senior advocate C A Sundaram, appearing for Wadia, that court appreciates his client for the response.

Nusli Wadia hails NCLAT ruling, says Mistry's removal was a vindictive act

Nusli Wadia, chairman of the Wadia group of companies, hailed the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) order reinstating Cyrus Mistry as the chairman of Tata Sons, and said Mistry’s removal was a vindictive act of just one person.

“It (the order) proves that Cyrus’ removal was malicious and a vindictive act of one person. I am proud that I was the only independent director who believed in Cyrus and opposed his unjust removal,” he told Business Standard.

Wadia was removed by the Tata group as independent director of three group companies — Tata Steel, Tata Motors, and Tata Chemicals — soon after Mistry was sacked in October 2016.

Wadia, 75, who fought several corporate battles in his 50-year career, was a favourite of former Tata group chairman J R D Tata to take over the group’s reins after him, but Wadia had decided to step back in favour of Ratan Tata.

After Ratan Tata took over as the chairman of the Tata group, Wadia was offered the position of vice-chairman, but he again declined the offer. Wadia, however, remained independent director on the board of three Tata group companies, but was removed by shareholders in extra-ordinary general meetings held in December 2016. The distance between Ratan Tata and Wadia grew as the latter was not happy with the acquisition of Corus Steel by Tata Steel and opposed investments in the loss-making Nano project.