Cyrus Mistry has been charged by the R Venkataramanan, who is the managing trustee of Tata Trusts. The manager has filed a criminal defamation suit against ex-chairman for allegedly making false statements and has sought ₹500 crores in damages.
The suit, which comes days ahead of the hearing of the case between Mistry and Tata Sons at the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) on July 3, has been filed against all the directors of Cyrus Investments and Sterling Investment run by Mistry’s family.
Mistry has been alleged with certain fraudulent transactions of ₹22 crores involving non-existent parties in India and Singapore at AirAsia India. The managing trustee considers these transactions a non-material and didn’t encourage any further study. He is also charged with false, malicious and derogatory allegations.
Cyrus Investments and Sterling Investment, which hold 18.5% stake in Tata Sons, had moved the Mumbai Tribunal against the oppression of minority shareholders and mismanagement of Tata companies.
Tata Trusts holds 66% in Tata Sons and was the force behind Mistry’s removal as chairman of the company on October 24, 2016.