Who are the Gupta brothers arrested in Dubai over South African corruption claims?

Atul and Rajesh accused of exploiting ties with president Jacob Zuma to siphon off state funds and influence Cabinet appointments

Residential villas on the waterside of the Emirates Hills district. The brothers spent tens of millions on luxury property and decor. Christopher Pike / Bloomberg

Villas in Emirates Hills can sell for millions or even tens of millions of dollars. Sarah Dea / The National

Rajesh Gupta and Atul Gupta at an African National Congress (ANC) event in December 2012. Simphiwe Nkwali / Sunday Times / Getty Images

Last year, a group of people held protests in Pretoria, South Africa, calling for the Guptas to face justice. Getty Images

Protesters hold placards outside Bloemfontein Regional Court where people, who were arrested after armed police raided the luxury home of the Gupta family, were due to appear in February 2018. Reuters

South African law enforcement agencies arrive to search the Gupta family compound in April 2018 in Johannesburg. AFP

Employees and contractors of the Optimum Coal Mine in Hendrina, owned by the controversial Gupta family, demonstrate in front of the gates of the mine in Hendrina, South Africa, in 2018. AFP

A demonstrator holds a placard that reads 'Guptas - stop gambling with our lives' outside the mine. AFP

A group of civil society activists protest outside the Gupta compound in Johannesburg's suburb of Saxonwold in April 2017, amid growing concern about the brothers' alleged involvement in state capture. AFP

Sahara Computers headquarters, owned by the Gupta family, in Midrand, Johannesburg. Reuters

Related: Gupta brothers arrested in Dubai over South Africa fraud allegations

The mansion hidden behind towering walls in the tree-lined suburb of Saxonwold in Johannesburg is now empty, its occupants having long since fled.

It was from here the Gupta brothers — Ajay, Atul and Rajesh — allegedly once held court and for a time became the centre of power of Africa’s wealthiest country.

As news spreads of the arrest in Dubai of two of the siblings, Rajesh and Atul, South Africans can hope they will eventually receive answers relating to claims of a near-decade long corruption spree that has pushed the country towards bankruptcy.

At the height of their power, it is alleged the brothers appointed government ministers and had others fired. Ex-Cabinet member Mcebisi Jonas gave evidence last year before a commission of inquiry that he had been personally summoned to the Saxonwold mansion to meet the Guptas.

Brothers accused of wielding vast influence

Mr Jonas said he was offered a $44 million bribe to take the promotion from deputy to finance minister. The Guptas were said to have made it clear that Mr Jonas would be their man, and would be required to sign off on projects such as a multibillion-dollar nuclear deal with Russia. Mr Jonas said he turned down the offer and was subsequently fired by his boss, then-president Jacob Zuma.

The Guptas arrived in South Africa from their native Uttar Pradesh in India during the early 1990s, when a country emerging from apartheid stagnation was ripe with possibilities. For nearly 20 years they lived in relative obscurity while building up a prosperous business empire, mostly based around computer imports.

Yet, they also found time to hitch their wagon to leading political figures, including Zuma, who served as president from 2009 to 2018 and is awaiting trial for corruption and fraud.

Just how influential they had become began to emerge in 2011, when the brothers arranged for a private wedding party to fly from India in a chartered Airbus. The flight flouted local aviation rules by landing at the country’s main air force base, Waterkloof in Pretoria, which is usually barred to civilian aircraft.

The 200 passengers disembarked without showing passports or clearing customs. Then, they boarded buses and were whisked to the wedding venue in Sun City.

Close ties to Zuma presidency

This would be the first of series of scandals involving the Guptas and their growing influence over the Zuma presidency.

They stood accused of appointing trusted associates to the boards of state-owned enterprises such as electricity company Eskom and national airline South African Airways.

Eskom over the past decade went from a profitable group to nearly $40 billion in debt and regularly inflicts extended blackouts on the country, critics say in large part due to a legacy of mismanagement during the Zuma-Gupta era.

The destruction of value during this time was not limited to South Africa. One of Britain’s leading public relations companies Bell Pottinger was forced into bankruptcy in 2017, when it was revealed it was on a retainer to the Guptas. Bell Pottinger ran a campaign using Twitter bots, to smear Zuma-Gupta critics as agents of a cabal of "white monopoly capital" wanting to reverse black liberation.

Bloomberg has linked at least $3.5bn in direct payments from state-owned groups to Gupta companies. The South African Reserve Bank has suggested as much as $32bn may have been stolen during the chaotic Gupta years.

As the tsunami of scandal built up, crowds would gather outside their mansion to protest. When Zuma was forced out of the presidency by his rival Cyril Ramaphosa in 2018, it was clear time was up for the Guptas and the family abandoned their compound and fled the country.

The Gupta brothers deny any wrongdoing and have fought the application of red notices issued by Interpol. They say they are the victims of a political witch hunt in South Africa.

“I foresee this will take many years to play out,” says legal analyst Llewelyn Curlewis.