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Dehradun/New Delhi/johannesburg: The media in India reported on Saturday, May 25 2024, the Friday’s arrest of Anil and Ajay Gupta in Uttarakhand state on charges of abetment of suicide after a prominent builder named them in his suicide note. Although the reports identified the two arrested as “brothers”, the trio that fled South Africa with their families included Ajay, Atul and Rajesh, while Anil is believed to be their brother-in-law, married to their sister.
The two arrested face charges of abetting suicide, as per revelations from a prominent builder’s suicide note before his fatal fall from the terrace of his high-rise building.
South Africa has expressed its intention to initiate dialogue with the Indian authorities subsequent to the arrest of the “two Gupta brothers” on May 24. One of them, Ajay Gupta, stands accused in South Africa of allegedly siphoning off billions from state-owned enterprises in collusion with former South African President Jacob Zuma.
Earlier this month, South Africa’s constitutional court gave a ruling against former president Jacob Zuma, considered one of the most disruptive and divisive politicians in the country, banning him from running for Parliament. General elections are being held in South Africa on Wednesday 29 May 2024 to elect a new National Assembly as well as the provincial legislature in each of the nine provinces.
South Africa’s highest court ordered that a 2021 conviction on his failure to attend a corruption trial leading to a 15-month sentence made him ineligible to run for office until after 2027.
When the authorities had tried to arrest Zuma, his supporters and family instigated riots in KwaZulu-Natal and most department stores were ripped bare.
South Africa officially designated Rajesh and Atul Gupta as fugitives in 2023 after the United Arab Emirates rejected extradition requests.
The Gupta brothers, infamous for their close ties with Jacob Zuma and his family are wanted in South Africa for racketeering, money laundering, unlawful activities, and acquiring, possessing or using the proceeds of unlawful activities in terms of the Prevention of Organized Crime Act (No. 121 of 1998); and submitting false, or untrue, tax returns.
The Indian media extensively covered the arrest of Anil and Ajay Gupta in Uttarakhand on charges of abetting suicide. While the reports referred to the arrested individuals as “brothers,” it’s pertinent to note that the three brothers who fled South Africa with their families are Ajay, Atul, and Rajesh, with Anil purportedly being their brother-in-law, married to their sister.
Check Newsroom24x7 exclusive: From Gandhi to Guptas: Satyagrah to “State Capture” in South Africa
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