A Labour minister has been embroiled in a Bangladeshi corruption probe after the country’s government accused her of helping her aunt embezzle billions of pounds.
City minister Tulip Siddiq, has been accused of helping Sheikh Hasina, the recently ousted prime minister of Bangladesh, to siphon off £5.2bn intended to be used building eight large-scale projects including a nuclear power plant.
The Labour MP for Hampstead and Highgate has not commented on the allegations, but Labour figures have described them as “spurious”, while Syed Faruk, the UK general-secretary of Ms Hasina’s Awami League party, said the accusations were “100 per cent politically motivated”.
Mr Faruk, a family friend of Ms Siddiq, told the Daily Mail, which first reported the Bangladeshi probe: “They are attacking Tulip because she is the niece of our honourable prime minister, Sheikh Hasina.”
The paper reported that Bangladesh’s Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) launched a probe into Ms Siddiq, her UK-based mother Sheikh Rehana Siddiq, and her aunt Ms Hasina, who ruled the country for more than 15 years.
It reportedly came after an order from the country’s High Court, which is said to have heard claims Ms Siddiq may have helped broker the £10bn nuclear power plant deal.
The plant was built by Russian state-backed firm Rosatom, while the deal was signed in the Kremlin a decade ago in a ceremony attended by Ms Siddiq, her aunt and Vladimir Putin.
Ms Hasina, Bangladesh’s longest-serving prime minister, is now in India after being ousted in August following weeks of violent anti-government protests.
The ACC is also probing other members of Ms Siddiq’s family, including her maternal cousin, Sajeeb Wazed Joy, who lives in the US, and her paternal uncle Tariq Siddiq, who is believed to be hiding in Bangladesh, the Mail reported.
An official said on Wednesday: “The commission is committed to ensuring transparency and accountability, irrespective of the stature of those involved.”
But the probe, if confirmed, could spark a row between the UK and Bangladeshi governments.
Critics said the story raises questions about Ms Siddiq’s ability to keep her job in government, as part of which she is responsible for stamping out corruption in the financial sector.
Tory MP Joe Robertson said: “It is clear that there are serious questions that demand answers – what is the minister’s involvement? What exactly is the nature of these allegations, and how can she possibly continue in post whilst under such a serious investigation?”
The Treasury declined to comment. Labour and Ms Siddiq have been approached for comment. Downing Street said Ms Siddiq has not been involved in any decisions related to Bangladesh and said the government considers the allegations “media speculation” on which it would not comment.
Ms Siddiq previously caused controversy when she became the first MP since the general election to be investigated by parliament’s standards watchdog.
The inquiry was thought to relate to Ms Siddiq’s failure to register rental income from a property in London, for which she was cleared in August.
