Summary:
- Treasury Minister Tulip Siddiq faces scrutiny as Bangladesh’s anti-money laundering agency investigates her alleged involvement in a £3.9 billion embezzlement case while members of her aunt’s political party (Awami League) campaigned for Labour.
- Sheikh Hasina, Siddiq’s aunt and former Bangladesh PM, fled to India after being ousted following 15 years of rule marked by authoritarian actions and extrajudicial killings.
- UK wing of Awami League members, including Abdul Ahad Chowdhury, actively campaigned for both Sir Keir Starmer and Tulip Siddiq, attending fundraising events and door-to-door canvassing.
- Sir Keir Starmer’s own connections to the Hasina regime have emerged, including a 2016 Bangladesh trip worth £1,200 organized by Labour Friends of Bangladesh where he met with key regime figures.
Treasury Minister Tulip Siddiq faces mounting pressure as revelations emerge about connections between Labour Party campaigns and members of Bangladesh’s Awami League, the political party formerly led by her aunt, ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
Members of the UK wing of the Awami League actively campaigned for both Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and Siddiq, attending fundraising events and participating in door-to-door canvassing. Abdul Ahad Chowdhury, the organization’s organizing secretary, campaigned for Starmer in his Holborn and St Pancras constituency in 2019.
The revelations come as Siddiq, who serves as Economic Secretary to the Treasury with responsibility for fighting financial crime, has referred herself to the Prime Minister’s ethics adviser amid controversy over her use of London properties linked to supporters of her aunt’s regime.
Sheikh Hasina, 77, fled to India following her ouster in August 2024 after 15 years as Bangladesh’s prime minister. Her tenure was marked by allegations of authoritarian rule, including attacks on opponents and extrajudicial killings.
Adding to the pressure, Bangladesh’s anti-money laundering agency has requested Siddiq’s banking information as part of an investigation into allegations that she helped embezzle up to £3.9 billion from infrastructure projects. Siddiq has denied these allegations.
The controversy has also drawn attention to Starmer’s own connections to the Hasina regime. In 2016, he undertook a seven-day trip to Bangladesh valued at £1,200, organized by Labour Friends of Bangladesh. During this visit, he met with then-Foreign Minister Abul Hassan Mahmood Ali and was photographed with Hasina herself.
“I am clear that I have done nothing wrong,” Siddiq wrote in her letter to ministerial standards watchdog Sir Laurie Magnus. “However, for the avoidance of doubt, I would like you to independently establish the facts about these matters.”
The scrutiny has led Siddiq to cancel her planned participation in a government delegation to China this week, choosing instead to remain in the UK to assist with the standards investigation.
Sir Keir has expressed confidence in his minister, stating that she “has acted entirely properly by referring herself to the independent adviser.”
Source: Telegraph
