Zuma meeting with Gupta brother called 'middle finger' to South Africa by minister

A South African cabinet minister, Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, has said that former President Jacob Zuma is "showing the middle finger" to the nation by meeting Ajay Gupta, one of the Indian businessmen at the heart of a major corruption scandal. A photograph of Zuma and Gupta at an Indian temple was shared by Indian media this week. About a decade ago, the Gupta brothers were accused of profiting from their close ties to then-President Zuma and influencing South African policy. Both parties denied wrongdoing, but the family left South Africa in 2018 after a judicial commission began investigating allegations of massive fraud known as "state capture."

South African authorities cancelled Ajay Gupta's arrest warrant the following year. The two younger Gupta brothers, Atul and Rajesh, moved to the United Arab Emirates, where a court in 2023 turned down a South African extradition request. At a press briefing, Ntshavheni said it was "very disturbing that a former state president openly and unapologetically shows the middle finger to South Africans who have lost a lot of money through the Gupta brothers' shenanigans."

Zuma, a long-time member of the African National Congress (ANC), was forced out of office in 2018 following corruption allegations related to the Guptas. He has consistently denied any wrongdoing. In 2022, a commission investigating state capture concluded that Zuma had hired and fired ministers at the Guptas' behest, including the 2015 dismissal of Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene for refusing to comply with the family's wishes, and the appointment of two subsequent ministers friendly to their interests. The commission also detailed corruption at state-owned utility Eskom, where the Guptas placed key executives.

After meeting Ajay Gupta in India, Zuma, who now leads the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) party, reportedly said he would stand for re-election in South Africa's next elections. In response, Ntshavheni said the 84-year-old "continues to show a middle finger and claim that he wants to run this country again." She also called it a "disgrace" that South Africa's high commissioner to India, Anil Sooklal, accompanied Zuma to the meeting. International Relations Minister Ronald Lamola announced an investigation into the meeting, saying it appeared Zuma was running "a parallel foreign policy." Under Zuma's leadership, the MK party received about 15% of the vote in the 2024 elections, in which the ANC lost its majority for the first time since 1994.