Guptas’ ‘citizenship’ addressed

HOME Affairs director-general Mkuseli Apleni was assigned by Minister Malusi Gigaba to address the media regarding the naturalisation of the entire Gupta family – a matter which is forming public discourse and is on the radar of Parliament.

“The minister and department of home affairs (on Tuesday) attended a meeting of the (parliamentary) portfolio committee on home affairs at which the matter of the naturalisation of Ajay Gupta’s family was raised, and duly clarified. This was followed by a briefing to the media in Cape Town in light of voluminous interview requests received,” Apleni said yesterday in Pretoria.

“This matter started with a document circulated on social media early in 2017 seemingly to draw public attention to the granting, by Minister of Home Affairs (Gigaba), of naturalisation to members of Ajay Gupta’s family.”

In June 2017, Apleni was asked by the portfolio committee to explain the controversial matter in Cape Town. He said he briefed the committee on applicable legislation and the process followed.

The committee was told “five Ajay Gupta family members” – Ajay Gupta, Ajay Gupta’s wife Shivani Gupta, his mother Angoori Gupta, son Kamal Singhala, and son Surya Singhala – applied as a group for naturalisation.

“The process of naturalisation in this regard followed their request for exemption to ordinary residence requirements as stipulated in the Citizenship Act, 1995.”

Apleni said Gigaba approved the Guptas’ request for early naturalisation on May 30, 2015.

“However, of the five, four members of the family, excluding Ajay Gupta, were naturalised after they fulfilled the requirement to renounce their Indian citizenship, given that India does not allow dual citizenship.

“The reason that Ajay Gupta was not naturalised is that he did not renounce his Indian citizenship.”

Apleni said Gigaba “never dealt with the granting of citizenship to Atul Gupta, who was naturalised on November 2002, having satisfied the ordinary requirements for naturalisation”. He arrived in South Africa in 1994,” he said. – African News Agency (ANA)

THE DESIRED OUTCOME OF THIS COMMISSION IS FOR THE PUBLIC TO UNDERSTAND THE DEPTH OF THE STATE CAPTURE AND THOSE INVOLVED