Rajesh Gupta and Atul Gupta, two Indian-origin brothers, recently made headlines after the South African government announced their arrest by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) authorities in Dubai, on charges of corruption and tax fraud.
The billionaire Gupta brothers have been accused of benefiting financially from their ties to former South African President Jacob Zuma. However, Rajesh and Atul Gupta have been actively denying these claims by the government.
An Interpol Red Notice has been issued for the Gupta brothers, and both of them are now wanted for graft, corruption, fraud, and money laundering. The South African government is currently in the process of extraditing the Gupta brothers to the country for a proper court trial.
Who are the Gupta brothers?
The Indian-origin Gupta family consists of billionaires and hail from a wealthy background. Most of the family’s interests lie in South Africa, where their business ranges from computer equipment to mining, and media agencies.
The most notable members of the Gupta family are brothers Ajay, Atul, and Rajesh "Tony" Gupta—as well as Atul's nephews Varun, and US-based Ashish and Amol. Brothers Rajesh and Atul are now under the scanner of the South African government for their shady dealings and financial influence in the country.
Why are Rajesh and Atul Gupta under the scanner?
It was a very well-known fact that the Gupta brothers had a close relationship with former South African President Jacob Zuma. The three were reportedly so close that the team of them together was dubbed the ‘Zuptas’ in South Africa.
It was alleged that a lot of the country’s financial and developmental deals were done under the influence of the Guptas during Zuma’s term as president, which ended in 2018 after corruption charges were leveled against him.
Soon after Zuma resigned, Rajesh and Atul fled the country and started residing in Dubai just as the South African authorities started to probe corruption charges against them.
The Gupta family has many enterprises, the most well-known of them being Sahara Computers, a company with over 10,000 employees in South Africa. It must be noted that the Indian government is also investigating corruption charges against the brothers, and several raids have been conducted in their Delhi headquarters.
READ | Indian origin Gupta Brothers accused of corruption in South Africa, arrested in UAE
