Coming out in support of the Tata Trusts, a number of Tata scholars have appealed stakeholders not to drag the trusts into the ongoing boardroom battle. The Tata scholars, who are beneficiaries of JN Tata Endowment, have reached out to the trusts expressing concerns over the ongoing issue.

Tata Trusts — with the biggest of them being Sir Dorabji Tata Trust and Sir Ratan Tata Trust — owns two-thirds of Tata Sons, the holding firm of all Tata group companies. The JN Tata Endowment for the Higher Education of Indians was set up in 1892 by Jamsetji Tata, Founder of the Tata Group.

At present, there are more than 5,000 JN Tata scholars all over the world.

“As Tata scholars, we are pained by the current events. As an institution, Tata Trusts tower over the rest because Tata is synonymous with trust and credibility,” said film-maker Janantik Shukla, a Tata scholar.

JN Tata scholars include luminaries such as former President K R Narayanan, astrophysicist Jayant V. Narlikar, physicist Raja Ramanna and former Tata Steel Managing Director J J Irani.

“The Tata culture is beyond business and profits. It has made a pivotal contribution to society through multiple means. It is unfortunate that selective information was leaked in media to malign Tata group, including the trusts, who are known worldwide for their ethics, values and culture,” said Vikram Raut, Consultant Liver Transplant Surgeon at Medanta The Medicity, Gurgaon.

Raut had won a scholarship for specialised training in liver transplantation surgery.

“Tata Trusts are reputed institutions that have redefined social development initiatives in India for the last several decades. Many of the JN Tata scholars who have all been supported by them are today well-known for the contribution to public service and this is a great national contribution,” R Balasubramaniam, a development activist.

Balasubramaniam is also a Mason Fellow of the Harvard Kennedy School and a fellow at the Hauser Center for Non-Profits at Harvard.

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