Johannesburg, South Africa – Kamal Singhala, son of the fugitive businessman Ajay Gupta, has been stripped of his South African citizenship by Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber.
Schreiber’s decision follows an investigation into irregularities surrounding the initial granting of Singhala’s citizenship in 2015. Records show Singhala’s first application was rejected in January 2015, only to be inexplicably approved nine months later by then-Minister Malusi Gigaba, a move that violated the Citizenship Act.
In a letter sent to Singhala on Thursday, Schreiber detailed the discrepancies and explained that Singhala’s written response failed to address the concerns. The letter further revealed that Singhala, instead of providing justification for his citizenship, criticized the integrity of the Minister and his staff.
Adding another layer to the controversy, City Press’ sister publication, Rapport, reported that Singhala is pursuing legal action against the department’s director-general for refusing to issue a passport for his daughter.
Schreiber, however, dismissed the relevance of these additional claims, stating they did not address the core issue – the violation of the one-year waiting period for reapplication after a rejection.
The investigation also uncovered a motivational letter submitted by Ashu Chawla, a director at the Gupta-linked Oakbay Investments, urging Gigaba to grant Singhala’s citizenship due to “exceptional circumstances” related to Oakbay’s investments in South Africa. However, Schreiber deemed this argument invalid as Singhala and the other applicants were not directors of the company at the time.
Singhala is reportedly contesting Schreiber’s decision in court.
