Former minister Tulip Siddiq has found herself in the spotlight again as she faces a corruption trial in Bangladesh.
The former anti-corruption minister’s trial is expected to begin on Wednesday, but she will not be there.
A wider trial began on Monday after 27 people were indicted last week by Bangladeshi courts. They include Ms Siddiq, her aunt, other family members, and current and former officials.
Ms Siddiq resigned from her Treasury job in the UK on 14 January after facing calls to step down over links to her aunt, the ousted former Bangladesh prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, who is being investigated by Bangladesh’s anti-corruption commission.
Sir Keir Starmer’s ethics watchdog found the MP, who was born in London, had not breached the ministerial code, but told the PM: “You will want to consider her ongoing responsibilities.”
The 42-year-old MP for Hampstead and Highgate insists she has done nothing wrong and denies all the claims.
Sky News takes a look at the allegation behind the court case.
What is the allegation against Tulip Siddiq?
The current trial relates to just one of those claims – that she illegally allocated 7,200 sq ft of land to her family.
However, Ms Siddiq said she has not been informed of the specific charges she is facing or received a summons to appear.
An arrest warrant for Ms Siddiq was issued by Bangladesh in April, with the MP saying she only became aware of it when it was reported in the media.
Bangladesh’s anti-corruption commission alleges Ms Siddiq was involved in the illegal allocation of plots of land in the diplomatic zone of a luxury development in Purbachal near Dhaka to her mother, sister and brother.
An affidavit, seen by Sky News, states that while serving as a British MP, she “exerted pressure and influence” on her aunt to get planning officials to appoint them the land.
Investigators claim planning officials were bribed and pressured into fraudulently allocating the land.
Bangladesh prosecutor Mir Ahmed Ali Salam said if Ms Siddiq is found guilty, Bangladeshi authorities could submit an Interpol Red Notice, which alerts law enforcement around the world to surrender a person to a certain country.
The UK and Bangladesh do not have a formal extradition treaty – but extradition is still possible through a request that is decided by the home secretary.
What has Tulip Siddiq said?
About the Bangladesh trial:
Ms Siddiq has denied all the allegations and sees the trial as a politically motivated smear campaign, calling it “targeted and baseless”.
She told The Guardian she is “collateral damage” of a “feud between Muhammad Yunus and my aunt”.
“These are wider forces that I’m battling against. There’s no doubt people have done wrong things in Bangladesh, and they should be punished for it. It’s just I’m not one of them,” she added.
“I feel a bit like I’m trapped in this Kafkaesque nightmare where I’ve been put on trial and I genuinely haven’t found out what the allegations are and what the trial is about.”
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Sky News understands her lawyer requested to attend the trial in Bangladesh on her behalf but was denied access.
We also understand the Bangladeshi authorities did not tell Ms Siddiq of a date change for the trial, and she only found out when Sky News contacted her lawyer about it.
In June, Ms Siddiq accused Professor Yunus of conducting an “orchestrated campaign” to damage her reputation and “interfere with UK politics”.
In a legal letter seen by Sky News in June, the MP also said comments made by Professor Yunus in a Sky News interview have prejudiced her right to a fair investigation, meaning the corruption inquiries should be dropped.
Ms Siddiq has also denied brokering a deal with Russia for the nuclear power plant and reportedly told a UK government official she was the target of a “political hit job”.
She also said: “I’m not here to defend my aunt.”
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About her resignation:
Sir Keir said on 6 January that Ms Siddiq had referred herself to his independent adviser on ministerial standards, Sir Laurie Magnus.
She had been due to join a delegation heading to China with Chancellor Rachel Reeves, but remained in the UK to clear her name.
In her letter to Sir Laurie, she said: “In recent weeks, I have been the subject of media reporting, much of it inaccurate, about my financial affairs and my family’s links to the former government of Bangladesh.
“I am clear that I have done nothing wrong.
“However, for the avoidance of doubt, I would like you to independently establish the facts about these matters.
“I will obviously ensure you have all the information you need to do this.”
Announcing her resignation, Ms Siddiq said an independent review “has confirmed that I have not breached the ministerial code and there is no evidence to suggest I have acted improperly”.
“Nonetheless, to avoid distraction for the government, I have resigned as city minister,” she added.
The MP has previously said she and her aunt never spoke about politics.
However, Sky News discovered blog posts she wrote in 2008 and 2009, when she was a Labour activist, describing campaigning with her aunt in Bangladesh’s general election and celebrating her victory.
The Times also reported that the MP’s Labour Party flyers and a thank you note to local Labour Party members after she was elected as an MP were found in the palace in Dhaka that belonged to her aunt.
Who is Sheikh Hasina?
Sheikh Hasina was Bangladesh’s prime minister for 20 years – the world’s longest-serving female head of government – but in August was deposed following a mass uprising after elections widely criticised as being fraudulent.
Her premiership was marked by rampant corruption, with Ms Hasina being detained on extortion charges and serving jail time.
Human Rights Watch has said it documented widespread enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings during her time in power.
But the 77-year-old was also praised for giving nearly a million Rohingya fleeing genocide in Myanmar refuge and assistance in 2017.
Following last summer’s uprising, she fled to India, where she is in self-imposed exile, and is facing an investigation by Bangladesh’s anti-corruption commission.
Most of Ms Hasina’s family were assassinated in 1975 during a coup d’etat but she, her husband and sister, Sheikh Rehana – Ms Siddiq’s mother – were in Europe at the time. They were offered political asylum by the then Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi and lived in Delhi for six years before returning home in 1981 with Ms Hasani as president of the Awami League party.
Ms Siddiq’s mother lived in exile in the UK during the 1980s and in 2016 was made a local councillor representing the Awami League in Dhaka. Her son, Ms Hasina’s son and daughter, are also councillors there.
Ms Hasina remains in India and will be tried in absentia over allegations of crimes against humanity.
How have Labour reacted?
Sir Keir said Ms Siddiq “acted entirely properly” by referring herself to the ethics watchdog to “establish the facts”, and added he had “confidence in her”.
On receiving her resignation letter, Sir Keir said he accepted it “with sadness”, adding: “I also wish to be clear that Sir Laurie Magnus as Independent Adviser has assured me he found no breach of the ministerial code and no evidence of financial improprieties on your part.”
He praised her for making the “difficult decision” to resign nonetheless and said “the door remains open for you” going forward.
Wycombe MP Emma Reynolds replaced Ms Siddiq as a minister, while Torsten Bell took up Ms Reynolds’ role in the Department for Work and Pensions.
What have the Conservatives said?
Ahead of Ms Siddiq’s resignation, Tory leader Kemi Badenoch called for Sir Keir to sack Ms Siddiq, adding: “He appointed his personal friend as anti-corruption minister and she is accused herself of corruption.
“Now the government of Bangladesh is raising serious concerns about her links to the regime of Sheikh Hasina.”
When the Labour MP resigned, Ms Badenoch accused Sir Keir of “dither and delay to protect his close friend”, saying it had become clear over the weekend her position “was completely untenable”.
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How has Bangladesh reacted?
Bangladesh’s anti-money laundering agency asked the country’s banks for details of accounts and transactions linked to Ms Siddiq, her aunt, mother, her brother and cousins.
Her allies insist she has no bank accounts outside the UK, and her spokesperson said she has not been contacted by the Bangladeshi authorities.
Nobel peace-prize winning economist Muhammad Yunus, who is leading Bangladesh’s interim government, said the London properties used by Ms Siddiq should be investigated and returned if she is found to have benefited from “plain robbery”.
Following her resignation, Professor Yunus said there will be a thorough investigation into properties and assets “tied to stolen Bangladeshi funds, including those linked to individuals with connections to the previous regime” and if it is proven they have benefited from embezzlement “we expect those assets to be returned to Bangladesh, where they rightfully belong”.
“Tulip Siddiq may not have entirely understood the source of the money and property that she was enjoying in London, but she knows now and should seek forgiveness from the people of Bangladesh,” he added.
