DA to lay charges against Guptas over Sun City wedding bash

Vega Gupta and Aakash Jahajgariah had a lavish wedding at Sun City in 2013, which was allegedly partially funded by SA taxpayers. Picture: Supplied

Vega Gupta and Aakash Jahajgariah had a lavish wedding at Sun City in 2013, which was allegedly partially funded by SA taxpayers. Picture: Supplied

Published Jun 30, 2017

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Cape Town - Shadow Minister of Finance David Maynier is set to lay charges against Atul Gupta, Ajay Gupta, Rajesh Gupta, Ronica Ragavan and Kamal Vasram with the South African Police Service after it was revealed that public funds were used to pay for Vega Gupta and Aakash Jahajgarhia’s wedding at Sun City in 2013.

On Friday, it was revealed that approximately R106 million ($8 099 950) was transferred from a large farm outside Vrede funded by the Free State government.

It was "then washed through a complex web of Gupta front companies, including Gateway Limited, Global Corporation LLC and Accurate, using two banks ­ Standard Chartered and the State Bank of India -­ before being used inter alia to settle a R43.6 million account, through a South African registered Gupta company called Linkway Trading, for Vega Gupta and Aakash Jahajgarhia’s wedding at Sun City in 2013," said the DA in a statement.

The DA says it hopes that this matter will be investigated thoroughly.

The Gupta wedding party at Sun City. Picture: Independent Media

As part of the lavish ceremony, Vega Gupta came out of a grand flower and was joined by groom Aakash, the couple then travelled across the pool on a floating deck. Picture: Supplied

The bride and groom exchange Varmala (decorated garlands) under shower of flowers. Picture: Supplied

The opposition party stated that "it is grotesque that President Jacob Zuma’s most important clients, the Guptas, used public funds, meant to assist the poor, to pay for Vega Gupta and Aakash Jahajgarhia’s wedding at Sun City in 2013."

IOL, adapted from press release

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