Mehli Mistry has fired a fresh salvo in his dispute with Tata Trusts, questioning the citizenship and tax residency of Tata Trusts chairman Noel Tata and asking the charity regulator to make him file an affidavit. The rejoinder was filed before the Deputy Charity Commissioner, Greater Mumbai, on Thursday, 5 November 2026. It is the latest turn in a fight over Mistry’s removal as a trustee of two of India’s biggest charitable trusts — and it is important to be clear about what is alleged and what is proved: everything about Noel Tata’s citizenship and residency in this story is Mistry’s allegation in a legal filing, not an established fact.

What Mistry has asked for

  • In a rejoinder to Tata Trusts’ response, Mistry says Noel Tata is an Irish citizen, holds a UAE Golden Visa, and is a tax resident of the United Arab Emirates.
  • He has asked the Charity Commissioner to direct Noel Tata to file an affidavit disclosing his citizenship at the time of his appointment as trustee, the circumstances of any change in citizenship, and his current tax residency status.
  • He has also asked whether Noel Tata previously held a Swiss passport while also holding an Indian passport.
  • He has questioned the eligibility of other trustees too — Venu Srinivasan and Vijay Singh — under the trust deed’s conditions.
  • He has sought an independent inquiry into the governance and finances of three trusts: the Sir Dorabji Tata Trust, the Sir Ratan Tata Trust and the Bai Hirabai Jamsetji Tata Navsari Charitable Institution.

The background: why Mistry was removed

  • Mistry was a trustee of the Sir Dorabji Tata Trust (SDTT) and the Bai Hirabai Jamsetji Tata Navsari Charitable Institution.
  • The trusts say his three-year term ended on 28 October 2025, after his reappointment failed to get unanimous approval from the board. Mistry stepped down as a trustee after board members voted against his reappointment to three trusts, including the Sir Ratan Tata Trust.
  • Mistry disputes this. He argues that the trust deeds — the 1913 Will and the 1923 trust deed — do not impose a fixed three-year term on trustees, and he has asked the Commissioner to annul the change report that recorded the end of his trusteeship.
  • He also alleges that Venu Srinivasan voted on the resolution against him after his own term had ended — Srinivasan’s term ended on 23 October 2025, and the vote was cast on 28 October 2025, which Mistry says invalidates the decision.
  • On 4 November 2025, Mistry had written to the trustees describing his departure as a harmonious exit. He has since said that letter was written after the trust had already treated his trusteeship as ended, and should not count as giving up his rights.
  • Tata Trusts had earlier questioned Mistry’s own UK citizenship and UAE tax residency while challenging his right to object to the change reports. Mistry’s answer is that the trust is applying one standard to him and another to its own chairman.

The trust deed argument

The fight turns on the old trust deeds. Mistry points to Clause 18 of the 1923 Bai Hirabai trust deed, which requires a trustee to be a “permanent resident of some place in the Bombay Presidency or Navsari”, and to provisions requiring trustees to profess the Parsi Zoroastrian faith. His argument is that if those conditions apply to him, they must apply equally to every trustee — including Noel Tata.

The trusts rely on a March 2000 legal opinion by former Chief Justice of India M.H. Kania to argue that those conditions do not apply in the way Mistry claims. Mistry has challenged that position.

The money questions

In a separate application filed in June, Mistry sought an inquiry into the trusts’ administration, raising questions about conflicts of interest, financial benefits retained by trustees, and decisions involving Tata Group companies and the trusts’ investments in Tata Sons. His application mentions an annual commission of around Rs 1.42 crore received by Noel Tata from Tata Sons in FY25, as shown in corporate filings. He has also raised questions about the engagement of Gerry McGovern for Norton Motorcycles and equity infusions into Tata International.

What happens next

  • Tata Trusts did not immediately respond to Mistry’s latest filing.
  • The matter is scheduled to be heard by the Charity Commissioner on 3 December 2026.
  • Nothing in this dispute has been decided yet. The Charity Commissioner has not ruled on the change reports, on the eligibility questions, or on the request for an inquiry. Until it does, the citizenship and residency questions remain allegations in a filing — not findings.

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