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Tata Trusts Meeting Turns Contentious Over Nominee Director Appointment At Tata Sons: Report

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Tata Trusts Meeting Turns Contentious Over Nominee Director Appointment At Tata Sons: Report


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The dispute traces back to October 2024, when the trustees appointed Noel Tata as chairman following the demise of Ratan Tata

Tata Trusts

Tata Trusts

Tempers flared during a meeting of Tata Trusts, as disagreements surfaced over the exercise of a key power—the appointment of a nominee director on the board of Tata Sons—and the broader question of how the charities should exert control over India’s largest diversified business conglomerate, valued at more than Rs 27 lakh crore, The Economic Times reported.

The dispute traces back to October 2024, when the trustees appointed Noel Tata as chairman following the demise of Ratan Tata, the group patriarch. At that time, the trustees resolved that Trust-nominated directors on Tata Sons’ board would require renewal every year after turning 75. This put Vijay Singh, 77, a former defence secretary who has been a nominee director since 2013 and a Tata Trusts trustee since 2018, in line for annual reappointment.

According to the report, four trustees—Mehli Mistry, Pramit Jhaveri, Jehangir Jehangir, and Darius Khambata—opposed Singh’s reappointment. Singh later resigned from Tata Sons’ board. Noel Tata and Venu Srinivasan, also nominee directors, were present at the meeting. Singh did not participate since the agenda involved his own reappointment.

The power to appoint nominees is a crucial lever of influence for Tata Trusts. Under Article 121 of Tata Sons’ Articles of Association, nominee directors hold veto rights over key decisions. Differences deepened when the four opposing trustees sought to nominate Mehli Mistry in Singh’s place. Srinivasan and Noel Tata resisted, arguing that due process aligned with Tata values and institutional stature must be followed.

Officials close to the matter described the attempt as a power grab. “Any decision of such kind needs unanimity,” one senior official told ET. “This hostile manner is not the Tata way of doing things. There is an impasse now, with three trustees against four. For the moment, Tata Sons will have two Trust nominees until a solution is worked out.”

One possible resolution, according to people in the know, is to appoint a professional search firm to shortlist candidates, with trustees also free to apply for the role.

Underlying the tensions is a long-standing friction over information sharing. Tata Trusts—specifically the Sir Ratan Tata Trust and Sir Dorabji Tata Trust—hold 66% of Tata Sons’ equity. Trustees not serving on the board complain of inadequate communication from nominee directors, alleging they are kept in the dark about deliberations. Nominee directors, however, argue they can only share key developments without breaching their fiduciary responsibilities, as board members are bound by market regulator governance norms.

Another related debate concerns whether nominee directors should accept board fees from Tata Sons, since they are meant to act purely as overseers on behalf of the Trusts.

Meanwhile, the Tata Sons board also faces additional vacancies following the exits of Ralph Speth, Ajay Piramal, and Leo Puri, ET added.

Aparna Deb

Aparna Deb

Aparna Deb is a Subeditor and writes for the business vertical of News18.com. She has a nose for news that matters. She is inquisitive and curious about things. Among other things, financial markets, economy, a…Read More

Aparna Deb is a Subeditor and writes for the business vertical of News18.com. She has a nose for news that matters. She is inquisitive and curious about things. Among other things, financial markets, economy, a… Read More

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Joni Lamb, Whose Christian TV Station Went Global, Dies at 65

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Joni Lamb, Whose Christian TV Station Went Global, Dies at 65


Joni Lamb, the president of Daystar Television Network, a televangelism broadcaster she founded with her husband, Marcus Lamb, turning their family into stars of Christian entertainment, died on Thursday. She was 65.

In an announcement posted on Daystar’s website, the company described the cause as “serious health matters” exacerbated by a recent back injury. It did not say where she died.

On a trip to Jerusalem in 1983, shortly after the couple married, Mr. Lamb visited the Mount of Olives and felt God telling him to move to Montgomery, Ala., and start a Christian TV station. He and Ms. Lamb poured their energy and modest finances into the effort and began appearing on the air two years later.

By the time they founded Daystar — in Texas in 1997 — they were experienced entrepreneurs and performers. After just a few years, they owned 24 stations around the country. By 2010, they had become the second-largest Christian broadcaster, after Trinity Broadcasting Network, and were reaching more than 200 countries, The Dallas Morning News reported.

Compared with other televangelists, the Lambs “are younger and come across as more ordinary folks,” David Clark, the president of a rival Christian broadcaster, told The Fort Worth Star-Telegram in 2001. “They come across as being sincere.”

Mr. Clark added: “Marc is sharp, and his wife, Joni, is a big asset.”

The Lambs frequently appeared on their own network in a talk show format, discussing the pleasures and challenges of domestic life in a Christian idiom. Ms. Lamb, who liked to break into song, was Daystar’s leading talk show host, over the decades moderating shows like “Taking a Break With Joni” and “Joni Table Talk.” She would often be surrounded by other female regulars, putting questions to a male guest who had wisdom to impart.

The prominent pastor Jentezen Franklin visited earlier this year, for example, to discuss his new book, “The Power of Short Prayers.” The conversation slipped easily into evangelism.

“For someone watching right now: You’ve been listening; God’s opened your heart,” Ms. Lamb said. “In fact, your heart’s already been opened for some time, as you’ve been looking, searching, and you tried everything else. Always say, ‘Why don’t you try Jesus?’ A simple prayer: That will change your life for eternity.”

During the episode she was flanked, as she often was, by her two daughters, Rachel Lamb Brown and Rebecca Lamb Weiss, and referred to her husband by his first name, as if the viewers at home were family friends.

In 2021, Mr. Lamb died, at 64, of Covid-19, after having frequently suggested that people should pray instead of getting vaccinated. Ms. Lamb announced his death on air.

The travails of the Lamb family were often incorporated into the station’s programming. In 2010, Mr. Lamb admitted on live TV to an extramarital affair and described an attempt to extort millions of dollars in blackmail.

“Christian TV took a soap opera turn,” The Dallas Morning News wrote of the episode.

In 2020, Daystar returned a $3.9 million Paycheck Protection Program loan after the CBS program “Inside Edition” investigated the company’s purchase of a Gulfstream jet used by the Lamb family for beach and golf trips.

Four years later, a panel of Ms. Lamb’s talk show regulars questioned her on air about an accusation by her son, Jonathan, that there had been a coverup of a family member’s sexual molestation of his infant daughter. Ms. Lamb denied that any abuse had occurred, and after an investigation, no charges were filed.

Joni Lynn Trammell was born on July 19, 1960, in Greenville, S.C., where she grew up. Her father, Billy Frank Trammell, worked for a local refrigeration and heating company and would evangelize with friends he made playing basketball. Her mother, Sandra (Hudson) Trammell, competed in the Miss Greenville beauty pageant.

The Lambs met at a Greenville church in 1980, when Mr. Lamb, a traveling Pentecostal preacher, was visiting. They married in 1982.

Their early investments in TV stations came fortuitously, at a time of deregulation that The Star-Telegram would describe as “market bottom.” They later made money buying and selling small broadcast towers, and selling airtime to ministries and churches.

In 2023, Ms. Lamb married Doug Weiss, a sex therapist who became a co-host on Daystar. He survives her; other survivors include her three children and several grandchildren.

On air earlier this year, Ms. Lamb told viewers that the Christian faith guaranteed a posthumous reward.

“When you pray that prayer, and you receive Jesus, he forgives your sins,” she said. “When you die, you’re going to heaven.”



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US consumer price inflation hits 3.8% in April, highest in nearly 3 years as Iran war fuels energy costs – The Times of India

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US consumer price inflation hits 3.8% in April, highest in nearly 3 years as Iran war fuels energy costs – The Times of India


US inflation rose in April to 3.8 per cent as surging fuel costs amid the ongoing Iran-US conflict drove up consumer prices, hitting a three-year high complicating the Federal Reserve’s path on interest rates.Data released by the Labor Department on Tuesday showed the Consumer Price Index (CPI) increased 0.6 per cent in April after a 0.9 per cent jump in March, the biggest monthly rise since June 2022. On an annual basis, inflation accelerated to 3.8 per cent, marking the highest year-on-year increase, since May 2023.Petrol prices in the US are now more than 28 per cent higher than a year ago, according to official data. AAA estimates show average gasoline prices have crossed $4.50 per gallon, roughly 44 per cent above year-ago levels, squeezing household budgets and raising concerns about broader economic fallout.The spike in energy prices follows the escalation of hostilities between the US, Israel and Iran earlier this year. Markets were rattled after Tehran blocked access through the Strait of Hormuz — a critical global energy route that handles nearly one-fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas supplies.Core inflation, which excludes food and energy prices, remained relatively contained. Core CPI rose 0.4 per cent month-on-month and 2.8 per cent annually, suggesting that higher fuel costs have not yet fully spread across the wider economy.Food prices also edged higher in April. Grocery costs rose 0.7 per cent from March, led by increases in meat prices after a slight decline in the previous month.The latest inflation reading adds to uncertainty for the Federal Reserve, which had earlier been expected to begin cutting interest rates in 2026. Policymakers are now signalling caution amid fears that prolonged geopolitical tensions and elevated oil prices could trigger another wave of inflation.US President Donald Trump has repeatedly criticised the Fed for not lowering borrowing costs faster to support economic growth. Attention is now turning to Kevin Warsh, Trump’s nominee to succeed outgoing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, whose Senate confirmation is expected this week.Higher fuel costs are also beginning to weigh on corporate America. Appliance maker Whirlpool Corporation said last week that quarterly revenue fell nearly 10 per cent, warning that the war-driven economic slowdown had severely dented consumer confidence.



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EBay rejects £41.4 billion GameStop takeover offer

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EBay rejects £41.4 billion GameStop takeover offer



EBay has turned down a 56 billion US dollar (£41.4 billion) takeover move from GameStop, labelling the proposal as “neither credible or attractive”.

GameStop boss Ryan Cohen launched an unsolicited offer of 125 dollars (£92.40) per share – half in cash and half in GameStop stock – to eBay shareholders last week.

However, the online marketplace’s board confirmed on Tuesday that it had now rejected the move.

In a letter, eBay chairman Paul Pressler said it reviewed the offer but believes that eBay is a “strong, resilient business”.

He added: “We have sharpened our strategic focus, strengthened execution, enhanced our marketplace and seller experience, and consistently returned capital to shareholders.

“With its differentiated global marketplace and a clear strategy, eBay’s board is confident that the company, under its current management team, is well-positioned to continue to drive sustainable growth, execute with discipline, and deliver long-term value for our shareholders.”

GameStop, which runs around 1,600 shops around the US, said it started accumulating eBay shares earlier this year and currently has a 5% stake.

Mr Cohen had previously indicated he would take his proposal directly to eBay shareholders if the company’s board rejected the deal.



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