The expatriate, from Kerala, is a leading player in the import and export of fresh vegetables.
The arrest is considered significant for implementing Saudization and also to curb “undercover businesses run by expat workers.”
He will likely be deported to India and slapped with an entry ban into the Kingdom and the GCC following the completion of legal procedures.
Sources told Arab News that since his arrest, business has almost come to a standstill with trucks carrying vegetables from different parts of the Kingdom and from neighboring countries waiting for the past three days for traders to initiate the auction list to determine prices of the produce.
The Indian trader's arrest was overseen by a committee comprising the ministries of commerce, labor, municipal affairs in coordination with the police and representatives of the governor's office responsible for monitoring the mandatory Saudization of the vegetable market, official sources said.
His arrest was also confirmed by Ahmed Al-Sulaimi from the Labor Ministry.
It was revealed that a significant number of youth were working with him, which authorities said was merely a cover-up where the Indian trader was the main authority dictating the business as well as influencing the price fluctuation of fresh produce, sources told Arab News.
Most of the Saudi youth who pretend to be employees in business establishments run by expatriates are not registered with GOSI (General Organization of Social Insurance), which is mandatory for Saudi employees.
Since the arrest, expatriate traders in violation of the law and dealing with huge volumes of business have also disappeared from the market, according to sources.
Since the Saudization drive intensified, expatriate businessmen have ensured that they have Saudis working alongside them in the vegetable market, according to the labor regulations. Besides the Indian trader who was apprehended, there are also a number of other Indian, Bangladeshi, Yemeni and Pakistani expats who run a flourishing business trading in vegetables.
Sources also said that amid the intensified inspections vegetable prices were stable now but it was hard to say how long they would remain so.
Meanwhile, Saudi traders who still constitute a small proportion in the market are appealing to the Jeddah Municipality to relax the rules in the vegetable market including reducing the rent of stalls to sustain the market.
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