DNA Explainer: What led to unrest in South Africa and role of Gupta brothers

After the imprisonment of former President Jacob Zuma, unrest started in South Africa claiming at least 72 lives so far. However, the worst affected are the Indians living there. An unknown number of Indian-origin people are said to have been killed in the rioting that hit the Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal provinces of South Africa.

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Thousands of businesses owned by members of the Indian community have been looted and destroyed. Durban, where one million Indian-heritage South Africans live, has been witnessing widespread rioting with shops, businesses and warehouses looted and set alight. More than 50,000 businesses have been destroyed or impacted in Durban, where many retail and technology businesses, motor dealerships, medical centres, pharmacies, and supermarkets are run by the Indian community.

(Image Source: Reuters)

The reason behind the attack on Indians is the Gupta brothers who migrated to South Africa in the 1990s from Uttar Pradesh's Saharanpur. The Gupta brothers - Ajay Gupta, Rajesh Gupta, and Atul Gupta migrated to South Africa in 1993. Atul was the first one to move to the country and start the company Sahara Computers, which started off as a small family business. Currently, it employs over 10, 000 people and has an annual turnover of about USD 22 million, reported BBC.

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From computers business, the Gupta brothers entered other businesses like mining, technology, media, and finally made headway in the government. In March 2016, the then Deputy Finance Minister Mcebisi Jonas said that a member of the family had offered to promote him to the minister's post in 2015 in return for 60 crore rands or Rs 375 crores. There are also allegations on the Gupta brothers of looting the government treasury.

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Between 2009 to 2018 several corruption charges were levied on former President Jacob Zuma whose investigation was being done by the law commission. Court ordered Zuma to be present before the commission for questioning, but he failed to do so. Zuma was arrested for contempt of court and sent to the Escort correction centre for 15-months. Zuma approached the apex court against the verdict but he did not get any relief. In protest, his supporters came out on the streets. Demonstrations took place in several places and violence erupted. 

(Image Source: Reuters)