Tulip Siddiq (left), and UK PM Keir Starmer TOI correspondent from London: UK PM Keir Starmer is beneath power to sack Labour minister Tulip Siddiq, deposed Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina’s niece, after period in-between chief Muhammad Yunus condemned the usage of houses allegedly proficient to her and her circle of relatives in London by way of allies of the previous regime.
Siddiq is financial secretary to the treasury and her function comes to tackling corruption in UK monetary markets.
Yunus informed TheSunday Instances he sought after the houses investigated by way of the Anti-Corruption Fee (ACC), saying that the property purchased by way of allies of Hasina’s Awami League must be returned to Bangladesh. “That’s the goal of the period in-between executive. The best way to convey them again,” Yunus informed the paper.
Siddiq (42) referred herself to the impartial adviser on ministerial requirements closing Monday after media stories printed that some London houses she lived in have been proficient by way of Awami League. “I’ve executed not anything unsuitable,” she mentioned in a letter to the authority.
Opposition chief Kemi Badenoch on Sunday known as for PM Starmer to sack Siddiq. “He appointed his private buddy as anti-corruption minister and she or he is herself accused of corruption,” Badenoch mentioned. Starmer had mentioned closing week he had self assurance in Siddiq.
Yunus mentioned it was once an “irony” that Siddiq have been accused of corruption. “She turns into minister for anti-corruption and defends herself (over the houses)” he informed the paper.
The Sunday Instances printed that an offshore corporate related to 2 Bangladeshi businessmen had in 2005 proficient a Hampstead flat to Moin Ghani, a barrister who represented Hasina’s executive. Ghani proficient it to Siddiq’s sister Azmina in 2009 and Siddiq lived in it.
Siddiq additionally owns a flat in King’s Move which was once given to her in 2004 by way of Abdul Motalif, who has connections to the Awami League. She rents this out and she or he continues to reside in a £2.1-million (Rs 22cr) area rented from Abdul Karim Nazim, an govt member of UK Awami League. After Siddiq moved into his area, Hasina’s executive granted him VIP standing.
Siddiq’s mom Rehana was once dwelling in a £1.4 (Rs 15 crore) million London area owned by way of the circle of relatives of Salman F Rahman, a rich Bangladesh rich person who turned into a minister in Hasina’s executive.
Yunus additionally referred to a file that discovered the elite had taken billions of kilos a yr out of Bangladesh. “They identified how cash is stolen, however it’s no longer stealing — while you scouse borrow, you cover it. It’s a theft,” Yunus informed the paper. Requested whether or not that implemented to those houses, Yunus mentioned: “Completely, it’s about undeniable theft.”
Mahfuz Alam, a scholar activist in Dhaka, alleged that giving belongings to individuals of the Hasina circle of relatives out of the country was once “a co-ordinated procedure carried out for 15 years”. “They have been plundering and aiding individuals who vouched for her (Hasina) and her politics,” Alam mentioned.
