Gupta family

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Gupta family (English: Gupta family or Guptas for short ) is a family association of Indian descent that has lived in South Africa since 1993 . His brothers include Ajay , Atul and Rajesh "Tony" Gupta and Atul's nephew Varun Gupta . They are known for their economic activities and close relationships with the South African President Jacob Zuma , his family and several politicians, which are often referred to as state capture (for example: "takeover of the state").

history

Beginnings in South Africa

The family grew up in relatively modest circumstances in Saharanpur in the Indian province of Uttar Pradesh , where the father of the three brothers worked as a small business owner. The three brothers and the nephew moved to Johannesburg in 1993, shortly before the first free elections in South Africa . At first they built up the company Sahara Computers ; as a result, they acquired or founded numerous other mostly South African companies. According to the South African author Pieter-Louis Myburgh, from 2000 onwards they had closer contacts with President Thabo Mbeki and the Minister of the Presidency Essop Pahad , both of the African National Congress (ANC).

In 2003, the future President Jacob Zuma first met the Gupta family at their place of residence in the Saxonwold district of Johannesburg . In the following years, the family supported Zuma, who took over the presidency in 2009, in internal party disputes of the ANC. Zuma's fourth wife, Bongi Ngema-Zuma, was employed by the Guptas. Zuma's son Duduzane Zuma became the director of six Gupta companies, and Zuma's daughter Duduzile Zuma became a director at Sahara Computers .

First critical public perception

In 2009 the western secret services MI6 and CIA became aware of the Guptas because they wanted to buy one of the largest uranium mines in South Africa. In 2013, the Guptas hit the headlines when it became known that they had landed at the heavily shielded military airport of Waterkloof with wedding guests from India with government approval . Zuma, who was also invited to Gupta's niece's wedding, canceled due to the criticism. The numerous revelations of the influence of the Guptas on state affairs have since been referred to as Guptagate .

In 2014 Atul Gupta and his alleged nephew Essa Omar Aziz - later identified as Salim Essa - received diplomatic passports from the neighboring kingdom of Lesotho . There you acted as advisor to the government of Thomas Thabane ( All Basotho Convention ). The subsequent government under Bethuel Pakalitha Mosisili declared the passports invalid in 2015.

In 2015, the Black First Land First (BLF) party was founded in South Africa as a split from the opposition Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF). The BLF is reportedly financed and influenced by the Guptas. The BLF denies this.

2016 to April 2017

In 2016, several ANC politicians said they had been offered ministerial posts by the Guptas. Sun claimed Vytjie Mentor to place 2010 by Barbara Hogan Minister for Public Enterprise ( Minister for Public Enterprises ) should be if the Gupta-owned Jet Airways would receive the right to fly to India. She refused, but Hogan was released shortly thereafter. Similarly, in 2015, Deputy Finance Minister Mcebisi Jonas refused to replace Nhlanhla Nene ; Nene was also dismissed shortly afterwards, while Des van Rooyen , who was loyal to Gupta , became finance minister for a short time. The Gupta family denied the allegations.

Four big banks broke off their business relations with the Guptas in February 2016. Atul and Varun Gupta then stated that they wanted to resign, Duduzane Zuma left his director's post, but the Gupta brothers later returned to South Africa from an extended stay in Dubai .

Also in 2016, the family hired the British public relations firm Bell Pottinger for an image campaign for the parent company Oakbay Investments . In April 2017, Bell Pottinger ended the collaboration after the Sunday Times reported that the collaboration was to be used to stir up racist tensions - allegedly a “white” monopoly capitalism prevailed - and to prepare for a purchase by Gupta-critical press such as the Mail & Guardian . Bell Pottinger had to answer for his activities in August 2017 at the request of the South African Democratic Alliance in the United Kingdom. As a result, the company's CEO had to resign; the UK branch of the company had to shut down after losing several customers.

Demonstration by EFF members in April 2017 against Zuma and the Gupta family, here with a picture of Atul Gupta

In 2016, the EFF launched the Zupta must fall campaign , which aims at the collaboration between President Zuma and the Gupta family. She criticized the Gupta family as " colonialist " and accused Zuma of being "chief colonial administrator". South Africa's Vice President Cyril Ramaphosa - like Zuma an ANC member - pointed out that his party was "not for sale".

In November 2016, a report by the public protector Thuli Madonsela was published, which documented the "takeover of the state" (in the original state capture or according to the title of the report state of capture ) of the Guptas and called for an independent judicial investigative commission to be released no later than 30 days Publication of the report should be arranged and a decision should be presented within a further 180 days. Zuma and van Rooyen tried to prevent this in court, but the applications were rejected or withdrawn.

In March 2017 there was a reshuffle of the cabinet in which Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan , among others , was replaced. He was considered an opponent of the controversial project to build eight nuclear power plants in South Africa by the Russian company Rosatom . The Gupta family would also have benefited from the construction through their uranium mines.

Publications of emails ("Guptaleaks") and other revelations

In May 2017 were Whistleblower numerous emails published, the influence of the Guptas in filling cabinet posts, including the promotion of Mosebenzi Zwane , now Minister of Mineral Resources ( Minister for mineral resources ), significant decisions politicians as well as state-owned enterprises as Document Eskom and Transnet . The emails revealed that during his time in the provincial administration of the Free State , Zwane used funds from a milk supply project to help finance the wedding of the Gupta niece in 2013. Also, according to the emails, shortly after his appointment as minister, he flew to Switzerland to orchestrate the acquisition of Optimum Coal from Glencore by Gupta company Tegeta Exploration and Resources . The South African Communist Party (SACP), allied with the ANC, then banned Zuma's participation in the party congress in July 2017; instead, Ramaphosa sharply criticized the incidents there and demanded an investigation.

A subsequent vote of no confidence in Zuma in August 2017 survived, although around 25 to 30 of the 249 ANC MPs had voted against him.

In August 2017, the state-owned South African defense company Denel ended its collaboration with VR Laser Asia, which was led by Salim Essa. India's Bank of Baroda also planned to end its association with the Gupta companies and leave the country in 2017. However, they were obliged to continue in October, since otherwise the group of companies would not have had a domestic bank to carry out its business activities. In March 2018, the bank was given legal permission to cease operations in South Africa.

In the course of the published e-mails in September 2017, further allegations became known: The auditing company KPMG had covered illegal transactions in the financing of the Gupta wedding in 2013, while the management consultants from McKinsey are apparently involved in illegal transactions with Eskom. Eskom paid 1.6 billion rand - around 100 million euros as of September 2017 - to McKinsey and Trillian Capital Holdings, which is related to the Guptas via Salim Essa, for alleged advisory activities. In October 2017, the German software company SAP confirmed that it had paid companies of the Gupta family between December 2015 and November 2016 a ten percent commission for transactions with Transnet and Eskom; several SAP managers were fired.

The Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) was also a target of the efforts of the Gupta family and Duduzane Zumas to obtain illegal contracts from state-owned companies, according to a leading PRASA employee.

The allegations that became known in December 2017 concerned actions in Lesotho: During their time as advisor to the Thabane government in 2014, they succeeded in getting their company Tequesta Group - a company not previously active in mining - to be awarded the Mothae diamond mine . The previous owner's concession had previously been withdrawn. Thabane's son Potlako Thabane was offered a position in the company - analogous to the processes in South Africa. Several sources report that the Guptas are said to have financed Thabane's election campaign before the 2015 election . However, Thabane did not become Prime Minister, so the Guptas lost the rights to the mine again. According to press reports, the Gupta family also financially supported Thabane's 2017 election campaign .

In 2016, the Trillian company negotiated with the government of Swaziland about the construction of the International Convention Center and two luxury hotels, as well as about plans to develop the country as a tax haven . The negotiations were prepared by the South African ex-minister and Trillian employee Tokyo Sexwale ; the company's board of directors met with King Mswati III , among others . and the then Minister of Finance of Swaziland, Martin Dlamini . Parallels to the procedure in connection with the state capture in South Africa became apparent.

Countermeasures and Law Enforcement

In January 2018, the Asset Forfeiture Unit (AFU) received a mandate from the Gauteng Division of the High Court of South Africa to seize assets from McKinsey, the Trillian Group and a few individuals.

Several members of the family were summoned by the National Prosecuting Authority on February 14, 2018 . Ajay Gupta did not appear; he has since been called a fugitive and is wanted with an arrest warrant . Atul and Rajesh Gupta, their wives and other employees of the group, including Duduzane Zuma until his arrest and indictment of corruption in July 2018, are also wanted by the police. Arrest warrants were also issued against her, as it became known in early March.

Also on February 14, Zuma announced his resignation after the ANC threatened him with a vote of no confidence.

Ajay and Atul Gupta were asked to speak up in person on tax allegations in India by the beginning of April 2018. Several companies in the group were placed under the supervision of government-appointed administrators (business rescue operators) . Law enforcement agencies in Dubai have been asked by South Africa to seize Gupta family assets of nearly 160 million rand. Atul Gupta was in Dubai in February 2018 to submit an affidavit .

A state capture investigation commission led by Judge Raymond Zondo was set up in August 2018. Ajay Gupta offered the commission to make statements from Dubai that would allegedly testify to his innocence. The commission insisted on a personal appearance. The family stayed in Dubai and Abu Dhabi again in 2019 , while numerous South African employees from Gupta companies were not paid.

Continue

On October 9, 2018, South African Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene resigned. It had previously been announced that, contrary to earlier statements, he had met the Gupta brothers several times between 2010 and 2013, including in their house in Johannesburg-Saxonwold.

Companies

The companies include, among others

  • Black Edge Exploration
  • Confident Concepts
  • Islandsite Investment 180 (Insurance)
  • JCI Mining Services
  • Oakbay Resources and Energy (uranium and gold mining and processing; listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange from 2014 to 2017 )
  • Scipio Technologies
  • VR Laser Services (steel production; Guptas and Duduzane Zuma each hold 25%)
  • Participation in Jet Airways
  • Participation in the V&A Waterfront , Cape Town

Former companies:

Edition of the New Age newspaper
  • TNA Media (from 2010 published the daily newspaper The New Age and operated the 24-hour news channel ANN7, African News Network), sold to Zuma-loyal entrepreneur Mzwanele Manyi in August 2017
  • Tegeta Exploration and Resources (sold in 2017 for 2.97 billion rand to the Swiss trading company "for clothing and shoes" Charles King SA )

Since 2006 acts Oakbay investments as a holding company .

In fiscal year 2015/2016, the Group generated sales of 2.62 billion Rand .

Place of residence

The family lived in the Sahara Estates in the Johannesburg district of Saxonwold and in Dubai ( United Arab Emirates ) until they went into hiding .

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Prega Govender: From Sharanpur to Saxonwold. timeslive.co.za, February 27, 2011, accessed August 20, 2017
  2. ↑ What was Thabo Mbeki and Essop Pahad's role in the rise of the Guptas? Mail & Guardian of April 24, 2017 (English), accessed December 17, 2017
  3. ↑ a b c The Guptas and their links to South Africa's Jacob Zuma. bbc.com dated November 2, 2016, accessed on August 18, 2017
  4. ↑ a b c 'Guptagate' claims against Jacob Zuma spark corruption inquiry by police. The Guardian, March 24, 2016, accessed August 18, 2017
  5. ↑ The brothers who 'hijacked' a country and ignited a scandal that's destroyed one of Britain's top PR firms, tarnished accounting giant KPMG - and set back South Africa's race relations by years. Daily Mail of September 30, 2017 (English), accessed September 30, 2017
  6. ↑ Full report on Gupta Waterkloof landing released. Mail & Guardian of May 22, 2013 (English), accessed August 18, 2017
  7. ^ The Gupta-owned state enterprises. Mail & Guardian of March 24, 2016 (English), accessed October 22, 2017
  8. ^ Lesotho revokes Gupta passports. City Press, June 27, 2015, accessed August 19, 2017
  9. ^ Gupta leaks: Gupta spin machine commissioned BLF's Mngxitama. ( Memento from August 27, 2017 in the Internet Archive ) amabhungane.co.za from July 24, 2017 (English)
  10. ↑ 'Guptas offered me ministeraial role', Vytjie Mentor. enca.com from March 15, 2016 (English), accessed on August 17, 2017
  11. ↑ Mcebisi Jonas takes on Ajay Gupta over Saxonworld meeting. fin24.com from February 17, 2017 (English), accessed on August 17, 2017
  12. ↑ Named: van Rooyen's two Gupta 'advisors' who almost highjacked SA treasury. biznews.com from February 15, 2016 (English), accessed on August 18, 2017
  13. ↑ a b Guptagate: family sells South African holdings after Jacob Zuma influence claims. The Guardian, August 28, 2016, accessed August 17, 2017
  14. ↑ Fewer friends for the Gupta family. Mail & Guardian of July 28, 2017 (English), accessed August 18, 2017
  15. ^ The Bell Pottinger, Gupta saga captures attention of world media. The Sunday Times, July 20, 2017, accessed August 17, 2017
  16. ^ Project M: the Gupta plan to buy the Mail & Guardian. timeslive.co.za from June 5, 2017 (English; archive version)
  17. ^ Bell Pottinger hearing concludes. ewn.co.za on August 18, 2017, accessed August 20, 2017
  18. ^ Gupta scandal claims scalp of Bell Pottinger chief. Financial Times, September 3, 2017, accessed September 16, 2017
  19. ↑ Final bell tolls for Gupta spin doctors: Bell Pottinger's UK branch goes bust. timeslive.co.za from September 12, 2017, accessed September 17, 2017
  20. ^ Floyd Shivambu: South Africa is under the management of the Guptas. Daily Maverick, December 17, 2015, accessed August 20, 2017
  21. ↑ Sam Sole, Craig McKune, Stefaans Brümmer: The 'Gupta owned' state enterprises. Mail & Guardian of March 24, 2016 (English), accessed August 20, 2017
  22. ↑ Thuli Madonsela : State of Capture , Report 6 of 2016/17 ( Memento from May 17, 2017 in the Internet Archive ) (English; PDF)
  23. ^ State capture report: Des van Rooyen application struck down. news24.com of November 1, 2016 (English), accessed on August 17, 2017
  24. ^ South Africa's controversial nuclear power plans. Deutsche Welle dated April 7, 2017 (English), accessed on October 22, 2017
  25. ↑ Here they are: the e-mails that prove the Guptas run South Africa. timeslive.co.za on May 28, 2017, accessed on August 17, 2017
  26. ↑ Exposed: explosive Gupta e-mails at the heart of state capture. timeslive.co.za, May 28, 2017, accessed August 20, 2017
  27. ↑ a b Neo Goba: We will not keep quiet on Guptaleaks: Ramaphosa. The Sowetan, July 12, 2017, accessed August 20, 2017
  28. ↑ Jacob Zuma narrowly survives no-confidence vote in parliament South African. The Guardian, August 8, 2017, accessed August 20, 2017
  29. ↑ Rene Vollgraaff: Denel exits venture with Gupta-linked VR Laser Asia. moneyweb.co.za on August 25, 2017, accessed December 21, 2017
  30. ^ Kyle Gowan: Bank of Baroda ordered not to close Gupta accounts. timeslive.co.za, October 9, 2017, accessed December 21, 2017
  31. ^ Gupta firms lose bid to have Bank of Baroda remain in South Africa. ( Memento of March 13, 2018 in the Internet Archive ) economictimes.indiatimes.com of March 12, 2018 (English), accessed on March 13, 2018
  32. ^ Claudia Bröll: KPMG and McKinsey in the corruption vortex in South Africa. Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung of September 14, 2017, accessed on September 16, 2017
  33. ↑ How McKinsey and Trillian ripped R1.6 billion from Eskom and planned to take R78 billion more. amabhungane.co.za, September 14, 2017, accessed September 30, 2017
  34. ↑ German company SAP admits to paying commission for SOE contract. enca.com from October 26, 2017 (English), accessed on October 27, 2017
  35. ↑ SAP admits wrongdoing in South Africa. spiegel.de from March 8, 2018, accessed on March 9, 2018
  36. ^ Montana: Guptas were defeated in bid to infiltrate PRASA. ewn.co.za, January 31, 2018, accessed May 7, 2018
  37. ↑ amaBhungane & Scorpio: #Guptaleaks: how family hijacked (and then lost) a lesotho diamond mine. Daily Maverick, December 1, 2017, accessed December 2, 2017
  38. ^ Lesotho election a two horse race. news24.com from June 4, 2017 (English), accessed on August 19, 2017
  39. ↑ Thanduxolo Jika, Sabelo Skiti: Mswati wanted Trillian to turn his country into a tax haven. Mail & Guardian of July 5, 2019, accessed July 6, 2019
  40. ↑ 14 Gupta-linked companies and individuals to have their assets frozen. news24.com from January 16, 2018, accessed on January 17, 2018
  41. ↑ Stephanie Busari: Son of South Africa ex-president Jacob Zuma charged with corruption. cnn.com, July 9, 2018, accessed August 5, 2018
  42. ^ Dominic Johnson : Corruption investigations in South Africa: Gupta on the run. taz.de from February 16, 2018, accessed on February 17, 2018
  43. ↑ R1 million reward for info leading to the arrest of the Guptas and Zuma's son. businesstech.co.za on February 17, 2018, accessed on February 18, 2018
  44. ↑ Qaanitah Hunter: Sources confirm arrest warrants for Atul and Rajesh Gupta. timeslive.co.za on March 4, 2018, accessed March 4, 2018
  45. ↑ Cyril Ramaphosa succeeds Zuma as South African president. bbc.com of February 15, 2018 (English), accessed February 15, 2018
  46. ↑ Gupta brothers get lifeline as Indian tax authorities grant extension. news24.com of March 28, 2018 (English), accessed on March 31, 2018
  47. ^ Gupta-sponsored gold-plated temple ceiling rejected in India. news24.com of May 7, 2018 (English), accessed May 9, 2018
  48. ↑ Lizeka Tandwa: Atul Gupta affidavit signed in Dubai. news24.com of February 19, 2018 (English), accessed on August 5, 2018
  49. ↑ Norimitsu Onishi, Selam Gebrekidan: Ajay Gupta riled by South African fgraft inquiry, denies charges from afar. New York Times, October 21, 2018, accessed October 22, 2018
  50. ↑ Guptas drop millions on double wedding in Abu Dhabi. Daily Maverick, February 8, 2019, accessed July 25, 2019
  51. ↑ Thabo Mokone: Nhlanhla Nene resigns as finance minister, Tito Mboweni to replace him. timeslive.co.za, October 9, 2018, accessed October 9, 2018
  52. ↑ Incomplete list ( memento of August 8, 2017 in the Internet Archive ) at atulgupta.co.za (English), accessed on August 20, 2017.
  53. ↑ The Gupta empire. City Press (English) at scribd.com
  54. ↑ Guptas sell The New Age and ANN / to Mzwanele Manyi for R450m. Mail & Guardian, August 21, 2017, accessed December 3, 2017
  55. ↑ Gupta's shed mining business 'to save staff'. Daily Maverick, August 23, 2017, accessed December 20, 2017
  56. ↑ Oakbay Investments annual results for the year ended February 2016. de.slideshare.net, September 9, 2016, accessed on August 19, 2017