Tulip Siddiq claims she is 'victim of a politically motivated smear campaign' after Bangladesh issues arrest warrant
14 April 2025, 12:39 | Updated: 14 April 2025, 13:25
Tulip Siddiq has claimed that she is the 'victim of a politically motivated smear campaign' after Bangladesh issued an arrest warrant.
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Bangladesh's Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) sought an arrest warrant on Sunday over claims she illegally received a 7,200 square feet plot of land in the country's capital, Dhaka.
The allegation is said to be separate from an investigation into Ms Siddiq's aunt, the former Bangladeshi prime minister Sheikh Hasina, regarding a nuclear power plant deal in which the Labour MP has also been named.
Ms Siddiq is the niece of Sheikh Hasina, the exiled former prime minister of Bangladesh, who was removed from power last year following an uprising.
The ex-Labour minister stepped down in January amid controversy over her alleged involvement in brokering a 2013 deal with Russia.
Read more: Under fire fraud minister Tulip Siddiq resigns amid corruption probe
Ms Siddiq has denied all allegations against her, with her legal team insisting the charges are "politically motivated".
Speaking to reporters outside her home on Monday, she said she was the "victim of a politically motivated smear campaign".
She insisted that there is "no evidence I've done anything wrong".
In a statement issued on Sunday, Ms Siddiq's lawyers said: "The ACC has made various allegations against Ms Siddiq through the media in the last few months. The allegations are completely false and have been dealt with in writing by Ms Siddiq's lawyers.
"The ACC has not responded to Ms Siddiq or put any allegations to her directly or through her lawyers. Ms Siddiq knows nothing about a hearing in Dhaka relating to her and she has no knowledge of any arrest warrant that is said to have been issued.
"To be clear, there is no basis at all for any charges to be made against her, and there is absolutely no truth in any allegation that she received a plot of land in Dhaka through illegal means.
"She has never had a plot of land in Bangladesh, and she has never influenced any allocation of plots of land to her family members or anyone else.
"No evidence has been provided by the ACC to support this or any other allegation made against Ms Siddiq, and it is clear to us that the charges are politically motivated."
