TVS family rift spills into Sundaram Clayton boardroom: Venu Srinivasan takes governance charge, tells Lakshmi to focus on biz

Hidden faultlines within the TVS Group promoter family, involving chairman Venu Srinivasan and his daughter, managing director Lakshmi Venu, are now apparently spilling over into the boardroom, adding a fresh layer of complexity to control and governance concerns at Sundaram Clayton.

Sundaram-Clayton demerger, completed in August 2023, separated its die casting manufacturing business into a new entity, while the original entity was renamed TVS Holdings Limited. TVS Holdings now holds the Group's investments, and is the holding company for TVS Motor Company, while the demerged entity operates the die casting manufacturing business as Sundaram Clayton Limited.

Within three days, the board has convened twice — initially accepting the resignation of company secretary PD Dev Kishan, only to reverse the decision in a swift follow-up meeting on Monday. At a hastily convened board meeting last weekend, Lakshmi Venu pushed through the removal of the company secretary. She is understood to have alleged that the incumbent — drawn from TVS Group services — was aligned with the broader establishment and not her.

Officials close to the matter said the company secretary is part of the shared services pool and that any transition would typically follow the appointment of a replacement, pointing to concerns over the process of executive selection.

The situation also placed Sundaram Clayton’s independent director, R Gopalan, in a delicate position, requiring him to balance professional governance and the evolving family dynamics. He has stepped down from the chairman’s post at Sundaram Clayton but stays on as an independent director.

Sundaram Clayton designated Srinivasan as Chairman and Managing Director with immediate effect.

Sebi is also learnt to have sought an explanation from Srinivasan on the matter.

But the patriarch of the Chennai-based TVS Group is understood to have stood firm on his position.

“The removal and reinstatement of a company secretary had no impact or was hardly any subject of importance to attract Sebi attention,” said a highly placed official.

Srinivasan and Lakshmi Venu did not respond to ET ’s requests for a comment. ET spoke with multiple stakeholders about the contentious decisions.

People familiar with the situation said Srinivasan, who had transitioned to chairman emeritus in 2022, has continued to retain oversight on governance matters. “Business is the children's domain, but governance will be managed by Srinivasan. He has built the businesses and retains the right to step in to exercise his authority. No decisions on that front can be taken without consulting him,” an official said, on the condition of anonymity.

The latest boardroom tussle has also cast a spotlight on deeper family dynamics. Srinivasan, group watchers say, is seen as more aligned with his son Sudarshan Venu, while Lakshmi Venu is understood to be aligned with her mother, Mallika Srinivasan.

In 2022, Srinivasan had brought in veteran professional R Gopalan as independent chairman while handing operational control to his daughter, Lakshmi Venu.

Sudarshan Venu was already leading TVS Motor Company.

The family arrangement effectively split the group’s core businesses—TVS Motor under Sudarshan Venu and Sundaram Clayton under Lakshmi Venu—but the separation has proved more complex in practice than on paper. Sundaram Clayton’s historical position as the holding company of TVS Motor has led to operational overlaps in sourcing, relationships and management processes, resulting in what insiders describe as “residual” or legacy issues that continue to influence decision-making.

Sundaram Clayton makes aluminium die-cast components for trucks and cars. It counts BMW, Hyundai, Cummins, Volvo and Daimler among its global clients. It reported a revenue of ₹2,109.14 crore for FY25, showing a marginal increase from ₹2,096.97 crore in FY24. Net profit was ₹257.92 crore in FY25.

SOUTHERN DISCOMFORT

These undercurrents come against the backdrop of promoter-driven southern business groups, known for strong governance and conservative financial practices, where control often informally continues to rest with the patriarch even after they step away from executive roles.

“There is no governance overlap. It could have been better handled,” said V Ranganathan, an independent director on several boards, reflecting a wider sentiment that recent decisions may have been rushed and could have benefited from greater board-level mediation. At the same time, Sundaram Clayton appears to be in a phase of recalibration. There is a growing perception that Lakshmi Venu’s focus may be divided, with increasing attention on the group’s agri-business interests led by Mallika Srinivasan, potentially limiting bandwidth for Sundaram Clayton at a critical juncture.

The company has also seen leadership churn. R Venkatesh takes over as chief executive from April 1, even as board-level changes continue, including the recent exit of Rajesh Narasimhan. Venkatesh is a long-time TVS Group insider, people in the know said.

Operationally, execution challenges have surfaced. A key land transaction, reportedly handled at the top level, could not be closed before the financial year-end, adding to concerns around decision velocity. Despite this, Sundaram Clayton remains a strong business, supplying to global original equipment manufacturers and benefiting from trends such as supply chain localisation in the US.

Yet, comparisons within the family are inevitable.

TVS Motor, under Sudarshan Venu, has delivered strong growth and market visibility, creating an internal contrast that some say has added to the pressure on Sundaram Clayton’s leadership.

Multiple people close to developments said the company is still adjusting post-demerger. “It’s not the same company it was 60 years ago,” one person familiar with the matter said. “The structure has changed, the context has changed, and it’s still finding its feet.”