Tulip Siddiq reportedly given London flat linked to deposed Bangladeshi leader
City minister Tulip Siddiq was reportedly given a London flat by a person with links to the deposed Bangladeshi leader.
Siddiq, who serves as economic secretary to the Treasury with a brief including “countering economic crime, money laundering and illicit finance” was reported to have been given the two-bedroom property near King’s Cross in 2004, according to the Financial Times (FT).
The newspaper cited Land Registry documents which they said revealed Siddiq had not paid for the property, and was given it by Abdul Motif, a developer, with links to the minister’s aunt – former Bangladeshi prime minister Sheikh Hasina, who leads the Awami League party.
A spokesperson for the minister said: “Any suggestion that Tulip Siddiq’s ownership of this property, or any other property is in any way linked to support for the Awami League, would be categorically wrong.”
And a person familiar with the matter reportedly told the FT: “Following financial support provided by Tulip’s parents to an acquaintance during a challenging time in his life, he subsequently transferred a property he then owned into Tulip’s ownership as an act of gratitude for her parents’ support.”
Hasina fled to India in August following mass protests that ended her 20 years in power. Regarded by her critics as an autocrat, she is facing an arrest warrant over her alleged involvement in crimes against humanity.
The King’s Cross flat was purchased in 2001 for £195,000, the FT reported. Siddiq does not currently live in the property but declares rental income from two flats in her , one of which she was reprimanded over by the standards commissioner last year for failing to disclose.
It comes after Siddiq was named last month in an investigation by the Anti-Corruption Commission in Bangladesh alongside her family.
She is alleged to have been involved in brokering a 2013 deal with Russia for a nuclear power plant in Bangladesh in which large sums of cash were embezzled.
Hasina is facing a wider investigation by an anti-corruption commission in the south Asian country, after allegations made by her political opponent, Bobby Hajjaj.
In court documents seen by the BBC, Hajjaj accuses Siddiq of mediating meetings as part of a deal between the Bangladeshi and Russian governments to build the Rooppur Power Plant.
It is claimed Hasina and family members siphoned off cash from the deal for their own private use, which they have denied.
Associated Press footage from 2013 shows Siddiq attending the signing of the deal between her aunt and Russian president Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin.
Downing Street said last month that Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer “has confidence” in Siddiq, adding that she “denied any involvement in the claims” accusing her of involvement in embezzlement.
A No10 spokesperson confirmed to CityAM on Saturday that the position remained unchanged.
The Labour Party has been approached for comment.