Hasina’s niece, a four-time Labour MP, is fighting for her political future over corruption allegations
Published : 15 Jan 2025, 05:39 AM
Sheikh Hasina, who had maintained an iron grip over Bangladesh for over 15 years, was forced into exile five months ago following overwhelming public outrage.
The dramatic political upheaval in Bangladesh has sent shockwaves through the United Kingdom, delivering a major blow to the political career of her niece, Tulip Siddiq, in London.
The four-time Labour MP has been embroiled in a corruption scandal that rocked her position as the city minister whose role included tackling corruption in UK financial markets.
The 42-year-old politician had been facing mounting criticism over the past few weeks, and was forced to resign late Tuesday night after an official investigation found her family’s links with the deposed Hasina government exposed the government to “reputational risks”.
The spotlight has remained on Tulip, who secured her fourth consecutive term as MP for Hampstead and Highgate in northwest London.
She was appointed to Keir Starmer's cabinet, but the allegations surrounding her past have overshadowed her political achievements.
Reports surfaced both in Bangladesh and the UK, exposing Tulip’s alleged ties to corruption and irregularities.
From receiving free flats in London to attending cricket matches without tickets, the scandals just keep piling up.
The situation worsened with reports of multiple properties in London, which have been gifted to Tulip and her family members or provided rent-free.
These properties, it was claimed, were given by wealthy Bangladeshis with strong ties to the Awami League and Hasina.
In Dhaka, Tulip’s name recently surfaced in an investigation into claims her family embezzled up to £3.9bn from the Russian-funded Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant.
As these stories unfolded, British media erupted in criticism of Tulip’s conduct, and the pressure for her resignation intensified.
Editorials urged her to step down, with many advising the prime minister to sack her, and opposition Conservatives joined the chorus for her resignation.
Chief Advisor Mohammad Yunus also called for Tulip’s resignation, as did a host of organisations.
Yunus said Tulip should return the properties if investigations prove that she benefitted from alleged "plain robbery".
Speaking to The Sunday Times, the interim prime minister criticised Tulip’s claims of innocence, highlighting the irony of her role as an anti-corruption minister while facing serious allegations.
Amid heated debates and growing criticism, the UK’s Anti-Corruption Coalition, a coalition of anti-corruption charities including Oxfam and Transparency International, called for Tulip to step down from her ministerial duties.
Hours earlier, the British Prime Minister Starmer’s ethics adviser Sir Laurie Magnus found that she had “inadvertently misled the public” regarding a Kings Cross flat in north London she had received in 2004 as a gift from a Bangladeshi property developer connected to the Awami League.
He urged her to reconsider her ongoing responsibilities due to the perceived conflict of interest.
Shortly after, news of resignation of Starmer’s personal friend and ally from the cabinet broke.
After submitting her resignation, Tulip said in a statement that although an investigation into her financial affairs had found no breach of the ministerial code of conduct, her position was "likely to be a distraction from the work of the government”.
"I have therefore decided to resign from my ministerial position," she added.
According to Reuters, the resignation of a second government minister in two months is a blow to Starmer, whose approval ratings have plunged since his Labour Party won a general election in July.
SUDDEN RESIGNATION
BBC wrote that Independent Ethics Advisor Sir Laurie Magnus had submitted his report to the UK prime minister on Tuesday. Then there was a telephone conversation between Starmer and Tulip. The decision to resign was Tulip's own.
Within several minutes after the news of her resignation broke in the UK media, it also started making headlines in the local media, sparking a flurry of discussions in Dhaka.
Tulip herself announced her resignation on X handle. She also posted a picture of her resignation letter to the prime minister.
Responding to Tulip’s letter, Starmer said he had accepted her resignation "with sadness" and thanked her for her "commitment" during her time as a minister, adding that the "door remains open" for her.
He said Magnus had assured him that "he found no breach of the Ministerial Code and no evidence of financial improprieties on [Tulip's] part".
However, Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said the UK prime minister had "dithered and delayed to protect" Tulip, according to BBC.
Writing on X, she said: "It was clear at the weekend that the anti-corruption minister's position was completely untenable. Yet Keir Starmer dithered and delayed to protect his close friend.
"Even now, as Bangladesh files a criminal case against Tulip Siddiq, he expresses 'sadness' at her inevitable resignation.
"Weak leadership from a weak prime minister."
Magnus spent eight days investigating the allegations after Tulip referred herself to the standards watchdog, the BBC wrote.
In his letter, Magnus said Tulip "acknowledges that, over an extended period, she was unaware of the origins of her ownership of her flat in Kings Cross, despite having signed a Land Registry transfer form relating to the gift at the time".
He said the MP "remained under the impression that her parents had given the flat to her, having purchased it from the previous owner".
On the controversy over the Tulip being caught on camera with Russian President Vladimir Putin during the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant agreement in Moscow in 2013, Magnus said: “It is clear that she had no role in the inter-state talks between Russia and Bangladesh there [in Moscow]."
The resignation of a second government minister in two months is a blow to Starmer, whose approval ratings have plunged since his Labour Party won a general election in July, according to Reuters.
Labour MP Emma Reynolds has been appointed the new Economic Secretary to the Treasury to replace Tulip.
Reynolds, who was a pensions minister, first became an MP in 2010. She returned to parliament in 2024's general election after a stint as managing director at a financial and professional services lobbying firm.
ALLEGATIONS AGAINSTS TULIP
Earlier, Tulip Siddiq had faced accusations regarding the undisclosed rental income from flats.
While she managed to dodge the accusations at that time, the political climate in Bangladesh soon shifted, and the situation started to turn against her after the fall of the Hasina government.
In Bangladesh, as with Hasina, investigations have now been launched against Tulip on charges of corruption.
The allegations against them claim that billions of dollars, obtained through bribery and irregularities, were illegally siphoned off to foreign countries.
The investigation into the alleged $5 billion corruption in the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant project began with the ACC's decision to probe the matter.
The Independent reported that Tulip is accused of involvement in a 2013 deal between Bangladesh and Russia for the construction of the power plant, with claims of massive sums being embezzled from the project.
In addition, Tulip is facing investigation over the use of properties linked to her aunt Hasina's associates in London.
Tulip Siddiq reportedly used a flat in her constituency that was allegedly gifted to her younger sister, Azmina, by a lawyer named Moin Gani, who had represented Hasina government and had a photograph with the former prime minister.
Tulip herself received a London flat worth £700,000 from Abdul Motalif, a property developer with reported links to Hasina and the Awami League.
CALLS FOR RESIGNATION
As city minister, Tulip Siddiq’s responsibilities included tackling financial corruption.
Ironically, allegations of corruption against her triggered demands for her removal.
Despite these allegations, Tulip has consistently denied any wrongdoing.
To counter the claims, she voluntarily submitted herself to an independent investigative body for scrutiny.
Despite her efforts to clear her name, media reports detailing Tulip’s alleged involvement in corruption—ranging from luxury flats in London to plots and projects in Dhaka—intensified the criticism against her.
As calls for her resignation grew louder, last week, Prime Minister Starmer once again expressed his full confidence in her.
But the opposition Conservatives wasted no time demanding her dismissal.
Most recently, the UK’s Anti-Corruption Coalition joined the chorus, urging her to step down from her anti-corruption duties.
British online newspaper The Independent reported that the coalition asked Tulip to step aside from her responsibilities for “countering economic crime, money laundering and illicit finance.”