Rajesh and Atul Gupta, members of the Gupta family, are accused of involvement with former South African President Jacob Zuma in stealing $ 2.5 trillion in India. Members of the Gupta family, Rajesh and Atul Gupta, have been arrested in the United Arab Emirates by police. The South African Department of Justice announced in a statement on June 6 that further negotiations were underway.
The Gupta brothers were indicted by South African authorities in 2018 for an undisclosed tender for a dairy research project in the Free State province, for which their business was paid 21 million rand (105 million Indian rupees.).A three-year investigation into the abuse of state has revealed a close relationship between the brothers and former President Jacob Zuma, with many witnesses claiming to be working together to extort money from state-owned transport, electricity and weapons companies, and determine who will be a citizen. appointed to the cabinet. During Zuma’s nine-year tenure, the government claims that $ 500 trillion Indian rupees were stolen.
The allegations have been disputed by the Gupta and Zuma brothers
The arrests came a year after the UAE and South Africa signed a repatriation plan. In 2018, President Cyril Ramaphosa’s administration appealed to Emirati authorities to release members of the Gupta family, and the following year the United States imposed sanctions, including travel bans and bans. Last year, the United Kingdom did the same, and Interpol added the two siblings to the most wanted list in February.
National power utility Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd. and railway and ports company Transnet SOC Ltd. they have been plagued by corruption scandals involving the Guptas and their people. After working on contracts with businesses affiliated with the Guptas, McKinsey & Co. The company, based in the United States, has denied any wrongdoing.
In December 2015 the Guptas were accused of being involved in the ousting of then-Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene and replacing him with an anonymous lawmaker Des Van Rooyen, an act that caused the rand to break. Van Rooyen was ousted four days later and replaced by PravinGordhan, a former postmaster, after complaints from businessmen, members of the public and members of the ruling African National Congress.
Ramaphosa would not comment on the arrests, his spokesman Vincent Magwenya said in a text message.”We have always said that the fight against corruption in South Africa needs to be intensified, so that if the law is allowed to take its place, those involved will eventually get their day in court,” said Stefanie Fick, chief accounting officer for non-non-chief executive Gupta. . “
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