The Reserve Bank has filed a formal caveat in Bombay HC, basically saying: ‘Don’t make any move on Tata Sons listing without hearing us first.’ Why? Because last week, RBI shot down Tata Sons’ request to shed its ‘Core Investment Company’ tag; which would’ve let it escape listing rules. Here’s the kicker: Even though Tata Trusts (led by Noel Tata) want to stay private and explore selling stake privately; especially to Shapoorji Pallonji; RBI’s new rules say Tata Sons still qualifies as an upper-layer NBFC. Translation: It’s under the RBI’s watch, and listing might be unavoidable. And guess what? Markets already smelled blood. Tata Chemicals and Tata Investment Corp shares jumped up to 20%; investors betting a Tata Sons listing could mean big money for subsidiaries. So… is this the beginning of the end of Tata Sons as a private entity? Or is there still a backdoor? Stay tuned; the next move could rewrite corporate India’s playbook.