A backbench Labour MP has invited members of the Awami League – the banned Bangladeshi political party belonging to ousted dictator Sheikh Hasina – to parliament. In case you needed any reminder of Labour’s close links to the organisation…
Hartlepool MP Jonathan Brash is hosting a “drop-in session” next Monday afternoon with “members of the Bangladeshi community, including my constituents and people from other parts of the country, to discuss recent developments in Bangladesh.” This will apparently “provide an opportunity to hear directly about concerns relating to the conduct of the elections, restrictions on freedom of association, and wider issues impacting the community.” Those happen to be issues hammered repeatedly by the Awami League since an election put the opposing Bangladesh National Party in power…
Brash added in a round-robin email: “Representatives of the Awami League will also be present. They are constituents of mine whose party was recently banned by the current administration and, as a result, were unable to participate in the elections.” The party was banned with anti-terror legislation by the interim government led by Nobel Peace-Prize winning professor Muhammad Yunus…
Ex-corruption minister Tulip Siddiq – niece of Hasina – has been sentenced multiple times in absentia by Bangladeshi courts on several charges, which she denies. Guido has long reported the close links held at the very top of the Labour Party with the Awami League. Arm in arm – strange look for the ‘human rights lawyer’ PM…
Guido can reveal that according to reports circulating in Bangladesh a court in Dhaka has today ordered an Interpol Red Notice for the arrest of Tulip Siddiq MP. Siddiq has been convicted multiple times in absentia of corruption in the acquisition of property…
Siddiq has always denied all allegations against her. Dhaka Metropolitan Senior Special Judge Md. Sabbir Faiz issued the order after a request was filed by the Bangladesh Anti-Corruption Commission. The ACC alleges that Siddiq is destroying evidence relating to her case…
There are currently 6,458 live public Interpol Red Notices, whose purpose is to notify police forces across the globe about internationally wanted fugitives and request that they are arrested pending extradition. Any extradition processes are in the hands of Shabana Mahmood…
Shabana Mahmood is currently set to decide whether fellow Labour MP Tulip Siddiq can be extradited to Bangladesh to serve a four-year prison sentence. Or risk a diplomatic incident…
Following historic elections in the country the man set to become Bangladesh’s foreign minister has told the Independent that the new government will seek extradition. Humayun Kabir – a foreign affairs adviser to PM-elect Tarique Rahman and tipped to be the new foreign minister – described Siddiq as a “convicted criminal” and “an embarrassment” to the UK government. He added:
“So we expect the UK government will sternly deal with all those Awami League criminals and terrorists on UK soil who try to terrorise and destabilise Bangladesh using money laundering activities. And we will provide a list to the British government… We want them back. And in terms of extradition, we would want the UK to track these criminals. If we are going to be a strong partner with the UK on dealing with illegal migration, why can’t the UK be any different in dealing with criminals that have fled to the UK territory from Bangladesh?”
Bangladesh is classed by Britain as a Category 2 Type B country for extradition. This is the process for those:
Siddiq has always denied all wrongdoing. This means that at three stages a decision will have to be made by Shabana Mahmood – if she is still Home Secretary at the time – with regard to Siddiq if an extradition request is made. Downing Street has always refused to say if the government will comply with an extradition request…
When this issue last came up Starmer refused to meet Bangladesh’s leader on his visit to London while the Labour Party attacked the judicial process applied to Tulip Siddiq in strong terms. Starmer met Bangladesh’s ousted dictator Sheikh Hasina, who is Tulip’s aunt, several times…
The likely outcome is that British diplomats are instructed by Labour to expend significant political capital to try to make the Tulip issue go away with their Bangladeshi counterparts. Even then the new BNP government may demand their judicial process is followed to its conclusion…
In two additional corruption cases ex-minister Tulip Siddiq has been sentenced to four years in prison in Bangladesh. In absentia…
Charges relate to land allocation and the allegation that members of dictator Sheikh Hasina’s family illegally acquired land from the state through corrupt means. Siddiq originally got a two-year sentence in December. Four have been added…
Siddiq has always denied charges against her. The Labour Party has also issued a statement:
“As has been reported, highly regarded senior legal professionals have highlighted that Tulip Siddiq has not had access to a fair legal process in this case and has never been informed of the details of the charges against her. This is despite repeated requests made to the Bangladeshi authorities through her legal team. Anyone facing any charge should always be afforded the right to make legal representations when allegations are made against them. Given that has not happened in this case, we cannot recognise this judgment.”
It remains to be seen what the diplomatic situation will be between the UK and Bangladeshi governments after incoming fresh elections will end the term of interim president Muhammad Yunus…
The Bangladesh Anti-Corruption Commission has filed additional charges against Tulip Siddiq following her sentence last month. Siddiq is accused – which she has always denied – of influencing her aunt to illegally gain plots of land…
After a delayed court process, the result of which was the ACC dropping one of the accused from its case, the commission has filed charges against Siddiq and a urban development agency official. It alleges that Siddiq gained a flat near Dhaka for free in an “illegal benefit”…
Siddiq has always maintained that the legal process is a political conflict aimed at the family of her aunt Sheikh Hasina, the ousted dictator currently in hiding in India. The additional charges were filed midweek…
The Bangladesh Anti-Corruption Commission, which filed a series of charges against Tulip Siddiq, has responded to the MP’s widely reported claim that the process was a “kangaroo court.” One of those charges has resulted in a sentence…
The Commission responded to Siddiq’s remarks, which were swallowed whole by the UK media:
“Tulip was found guilty of influencing her aunt to secure land for her mother and siblings. The prosecution examined 32 witnesses, several of whom testified under oath that Tulip used her influence to have the plot allotted. Their testimonies, along with circumstantial evidence, showed she was ‘deeply involved in the illegal process’.”
The Commission also dimissed Siddiq’s complaint about not being contacted:
“Tulip had also been linked to London properties purchased through offshore companies. It rejected her claim that she was unable to respond to the charges, saying she had the opportunity to attend the trial but declined to appear or appoint representation, leading to her being tried in absentia.”
Bangladeshi authorities made clear from the start that Siddiq would be formally notified at her alleged Bangladeshi address about the charges and court proceedings. On Monday she defended herself by claiming she invited interim PM Muhammad Yunus for a coffee in parliament to talk things through. Not how it works…
Siddiq claimed she was ‘baffled’ by the entire case. As international security expert Professor John Heatherow points out:
“It’s as if the former treasury minister responsible for anti-corruption measures with respect to the UK financial sector had not considered that family and business ties to a corrupt regime which took brutal action to suprress protests might cause controversy. Baffled.”
Siddiq denies all allegations against her. She is subject to several additional charges…
Former leader of the SNP in Westminster Ian Blackford told Times Radio why he believes Nicola Sturgeon’s claim that she spent no time in the kitchen and therefore didn’t see any of her husband’s purchases:
“She doesn’t have a passion for cooking.”