SA monitors arrest of Gupta relatives

South Africa's Department of Justice will hold engagements with officials in India following the arrest of Ajay and Anil Gupta on Friday for their alleged involvement in the death of a prominent builder in Dehradun. Spokesperson Chrispin Phiri said authorities were aware of the reports of the Gupta bothers' arrest. ‘The department has noted reports of the arrest of two Gupta brothers, Ajay and Anil, in India. Our arrest warrants were for Rajesh and Atul Gupta, nevertheless formal processes are under way through the High Commissioner in India to verify and for possible engagement,’ he told News24. According to the Times of India, the siblings were arrested on charges of abetment of suicide after Satinder Sawhney named them in a suicide note before he plunged off the terrace of a seven-storey apartment. The two were arrested by the Dehradun police on Friday. Anil is married to Achla, the sister of the Gupta brothers. Speaking at an ANC rally at FNB Stadium in Johannesburg, Justice Minister Ronald Lamola clarified that the suspects had indeed been arrested in India, but they were not the ones SA issued an warrant of arrest for. Rajesh and Atul have been accused of large-scale corruption and political influence over former President Jacob Zuma. Their assets in SA have been subject to freezing orders, and they have been involved in legal battles to release those assets. Several countries have expressed concerns or taken actions regarding the Guptas due to allegations of corruption and money laundering.

In April, National Director of Public Prosecutions Shamila Batohi said SA authorities faced challenges in extraditing Atul and Rajesh back to SA from the UAE to face charges, including fraud and money laundering, related to state capture. News24 notes that SA’s extradition request to the UAE was rejected in April 2023, and Batohi said follow-ups to discover the reasons for the request denial had not been satisfactorily responded to by their Middle Eastern counterparts. ‘We've been trying to … set up a meeting with the national director and the head of the prosecuting authority in the UAE in order for us to understand this, (but) we've not been able to schedule that meeting for months,’ she said.

Full News24 report

The Citizen reports that it against the law in India to drive someone to the point of taking their own life. If found guilty, the Guptas could face 10 years behind bars and a fine. According to police, Sawhney stated in his suicide note that the Guptas had been threatening him over financial matters related to a construction partnership project. The New Indian Express reported that the deceased builder refers to Ajay Gupta’s ‘extremely dangerous background’ as a ‘fraudster’. ‘Ajay Gupta stressed me and my business partner out because of his background. We were too afraid to say anything in front of him due to his extremely dangerous background. He is a notorious fraudster. We are too scared of Ajay and Anil, especially because public funds are involved in this project…I will rather commit suicide,’ Sawhney wrote.

Full report in The Citizen