Ashish Lata Ramgobin is the daughter of Ela Gandhi and the late Mewa Ramgobind. Ela is the daughter of Manilal Gandhi, the second son of Mohandas Gandhi. Ela was once a member of the South African Parliament.
Ashish Lata Ramgobin, the great grand-daughter of Mahatma Gandhi, has been sentenced to seven years in jail by a Durban court after it found her guilty in a 6 million rand fraud and forgery case.
Ashish Lata Ramgobin is the daughter of Ela Gandhi and the late Mewa Ramgobind. Ela is the daughter of Manilal Gandhi, the second son of Mohandas Gandhi. Ela was once a member of the South African Parliament.
Ramgobin had been accused of defrauding a South African importer of 6.2 million Rand on the pretext of clearing customs and import duties on a consignment from India that did not exist.
The prosecutors contended that Ramgobin provided forged documents and invoices to convince Maharaj that she had imported three containers of linen from India. Initially, she was released on bail of 50,000 Rand.
Natasha Kara, the spokesperson for the National Prosecuting Authority, said that Ramgobin had been experiencing financial troubles to pay for import costs and customs and needed the money to clear the goods at the harbour.
She reached out to SR Maharaj, the director of the New Africa Alliance Footwear Distributors that imports, manufactures and sells clothing, linen and footwear.
She asked Maharaj to lend her 6.2 million Rand to clear the consignment.
The prosecution said that to convince the businessman, Ramgobin showed him what she claimed was a signed purchase order for the goods. She later sent him an invoice and delivery note as proof that the goods had been delivered and payment was imminent.