Free State families still waiting as Nulane case rolls on
Vrede community's long wait for answers enters a new courtroom stage
When the Nulane Investments case returns to the Bloemfontein High Court on January 20, 2027, it will be more than four years since a handful of officials and businesspeople walked free from the Free State High Court. For the former officials who once ran departments in the province, and for the families watching a corruption case stretch across a decade, the pre-trial conference marks another stage in a long wait for answers about R24.9 million in public money.
That money, the State alleges, flowed irregularly from the Free State Agriculture Department to businessman Iqbal Sharma’s company, Nulane Investments. It was meant to pay for a feasibility study tied to the flagship Mohoma Mobung project. That project led to the Vrede Dairy farm, a venture linked to the Gupta family, and for the communities around Vrede the name has become shorthand for state capture’s reach into ordinary provincial life.
The Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court postponed the matter as prosecutors prepare to press ahead against Sharma, his Gupta-linked associates and several former department officials. The accused include Peter Thabethe, formerly head of the Free State Health Department; Limakatso Moorosi, a former department head; former chief financial officer Seipati Dhlamini; Ronica Ragavan, who represents the Gupta-owned Islandsite Investments; and Dinesh Patel, Sharma’s brother-in-law. All were present in court after being issued with summons, IDAC spokesperson Henry Mamothame said in June 2026, when the case was re-enrolled and postponed to September 22 for disclosure of the docket.
What the money actually bought is central to the State’s case. National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago said investigations uncovered that Nulane had contracted Deloitte to conduct the study for R1.5 million, a sum he described as far below the R24.9 million Nulane itself pocketed. The State alleges the accused acted in common purpose in connection with the payment.
The road back to court has been anything but smooth. The accused were acquitted in April 2023, when the High Court granted their applications under Section 174 of the Criminal Procedure Act, a provision allowing discharge at the close of the State’s case if no reasonable court could convict. The NPA appealed. In June 2025, IOL reported that the Supreme Court of Appeal had overturned the acquittal and ordered a retrial before a different judge. The accused then took the matter to the Constitutional Court, which dismissed the bid. Kganyago confirmed IDAC, the NPA’s Investigating Directorate Against Corruption, formally reinstated the case on June 4.
NPA spokesperson Mthunzi Mhaga said previously that the SCA found Acting Judge Nompumelelo Gusha had misdirected herself in applying the relevant legal principles, and that she had also erred in her criticism of the prosecution team. The ruling, he said, paved the way for the reinstatement, and he added that the authority remained committed to prosecuting those responsible for state capture-era corruption.
That commitment extends well beyond one Free State family’s docket. Mhaga said IDAC had enrolled 50 cases and declared 133 investigations, and had worked with the Asset Forfeiture Unit to secure freezing and preservation orders worth R14.3 billion, of which R8.2 billion in confiscation orders has been deposited into the Criminal Asset Recovery Account. “Since becoming permanent and with requisite criminal investigative powers in August 2024, IDAC has expanded its capacity to enable it to deliver effectively on its prosecution-led mandate,” Mhaga said. The directorate, he noted, now has a partnership giving it access to a digital evidence unit capable of extracting data from encrypted devices for use as admissible evidence.
Whether the 2027 conference finally sets the R24.9 million matter on a firm trial date, after years of acquittals, appeals and reinstatements, is the question everyone connected to the case will be watching.
Further background on the case is available at: https://iol.co.za/news/crime-and-courts/r249m-nulane-payment-at-centre-of-gupta-linked-corruption-case/
Q&A
What is the Nulane Investments case about?
The State alleges R24.9 million flowed irregularly from the Free State Agriculture Department to businessman Iqbal Sharma's company, Nulane Investments, to pay for a feasibility study tied to the Mohoma Mobung project, which led to the Vrede Dairy farm linked to the Gupta family.
Who is accused in the case?
The accused include Iqbal Sharma; Peter Thabethe, formerly head of the Free State Health Department; Limakatso Moorosi, a former department head; former chief financial officer Seipati Dhlamini; Ronica Ragavan, who represents the Gupta-owned Islandsite Investments; and Dinesh Patel, Sharma's brother-in-law.
How did the case reach a retrial after the 2023 acquittal?
The accused were acquitted in April 2023 when the High Court granted discharge under Section 174 of the Criminal Procedure Act. The NPA appealed, and in June 2025 the Supreme Court of Appeal overturned the acquittal and ordered a retrial before a different judge. The Constitutional Court dismissed the accused's bid, and IDAC formally reinstated the case on June 4.
What broader anti-corruption work has IDAC reported?
IDAC has enrolled 50 cases and declared 133 investigations, and with the Asset Forfeiture Unit secured freezing and preservation orders worth R14.3 billion, of which R8.2 billion in confiscation orders has been deposited into the Criminal Asset Recovery Account. It also has access to a digital evidence unit capable of extracting data from encrypted devices.