From rags to riches to ignominy
The Gupta family rose from humble beginnings in India to rule a business empire that dominated South Africa. Today, they are still on the run from authorities that accuse them of corruption. Jane Lewis reports
South African officials are still “fuming” after learning that a United Arab Emirates court has denied a request to extradite the Indian businessmen Atul and Rajesh Gupta – who fled to the UAE five years ago after being implicated in large-scale fraud, money-laundering, and the looting of state funds under former president Jacob Zuma.
The affair is, to say the least, murky, says The New York Times. The UAE said the request had been denied due to a “technicality”, but it turns out there was a two-month delay in informing South Africa – during which time, the birds have flown. There are rumours that the two brothers (the third, Ajay, escaped arrest) have obtained passports from Vanuatu, a cluster of islands in the South Pacific; the online news site Africa Intelligence reports a sighting in Switzerland.
The untouchables
The Guptas, who have denied wrongdoing, claim to be the victims of political infighting. But years after their fall, most South Africans are still trying to digest the impact of the clan whose unfettered access to power and wealth during the Zuma era came close to “state capture”, says the BBC. By all accounts their rise was of the rags-to-riches variety, says India Today. The brothers, now in their 50s, grew up in Uttar Pradesh, north of Delhi, in “dilapidated” conditions. Their father, Shiv Kumar Gupta, had a small firm with a sideline in importing spices. Gupta senior encouraged all his sons to go out into the world, says the Financial Times. “Ajay went to Russia, Rajesh to China” and the middle son, Atul,
“A trial might have been cathartic for South Africa; it remains a forlorn hope”
ended up in Johannesburg in 1993, where he established a small IT outfit. Apartheid was over, South Africa was opening up, red tape was minimal and opportunities seemed to abound. Atul had no problem persuading his brothers to join him.
Realising the key to success was making connections with the ruling ANC party, the brothers balanced building their business – they moved swiftly into mining, property and the media – with schmoozing. They “placed their chips on various politicians”, including Jacob Zuma, whom they met at a business dinner and found “charming”.
During the 2000s, Zuma “did not seem like a promising bet”. Elected deputy president in 1999, he was fired and charged with more than 700 counts of racketeering, money laundering, corruption and fraud. But the Guptas “stuck with him throughout” and were rewarded when Zuma, against the odds, became president in 2009.
Haunted by a legacy
An official inquiry last year exposed how assiduously the Guptas courted Zuma, putting several members of his family on the payroll – most significantly his son, Duduzane, who became a shareholder in several Gupta-linked companies, says the BBC. That was the prelude to the looting of billions of dollars from state coffers in the form of contracts. Before long, the Guptas were routinely “vetting ministerial appointments”, as well as those of key state-owned businesses such as Africa’s largest electricity supplier, Eskom, and the railway company Transnet, says the FT.
The beginning of the end came in 2013 when the Guptas – “who had mostly flown under the radar” – were forced into the public view after throwing an extravagant wedding for their niece in the glitzy Sun City complex. The most telling detail was that the Guptas’ guests were flown in via an airbase usually reserved for the military and heads of state. Following an inquiry in 2016, the brothers began selling their South African businesses and left the country for Dubai, at some point before February 2018, when Zuma was replaced as president by Cyril Ramaphosa.
Not much remains of the Guptas’ business empire. But their legacy continues to haunt South Africa, whose financial health remains weakened by the money siphoned off during the Zuma years. A trial might have been cathartic; it remains a forlorn hope.