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UK City minister Tulip Siddiq is under growing pressure to resign after being embroiled in a scandal tied to the ousted Bangladesh government.
The minister, who is responsible for fighting corruption, lives in many places together with his auntformer Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina and her Awami League party. They were accused of extorting money from local banks, although they denied the claims.
“It is time for Tulip Siddiq to explain the source of his wealth, whether or not it is from his aunt's fraudulently obtained money,” said home secretary Chris Philp.
He asked Sir Keir Starmer to “remove him from his role as anti-corruption minister until these questions are answered . . . the prime minister's constant failure to answer any questions, and to take any action, shows that he has no strength or integrity.”
While Starmer stood by Siddiq, a senior Labor official told the FT that party leaders were finding it “difficult to defend” his financial affairs and his position was becoming increasingly unreliable. “Become a millstone,” they said.
The FT revealed on Friday that Siddiq he became the owner of a two bedroom flat near King's Cross in 2004 without paying for it. The property had been bought three years earlier for £195,000 by Abdul Motalif, an inventor with connections to senior figures in the Awami League. A similar house, which Siddiq still owns, was sold for £650,000 in August.
Over the weekend, the Sunday Times first reported that Siddiq was living in a separate property in Hampstead that was transferred to his sister by Moin Ghani, now a prominent lawyer representing Bangladesh's Awami League-led government. People familiar with Siddiq's position confirmed his accommodation arrangements.
Ghani had previously registered his address as a flat in King's Cross. He did not respond to the request to breathe.
He also rents a £2.1mn home in East Finchley owned by Abdul Karim, a leading member of the UK wing of the Awami League. He moved into the property, outside of his home district, shortly after it was purchased in July 2022, according to Land Registry filings.
Siddiq's partner said he was paying “sales taxes” and that the landlord-tenant relationship between him and Karim had been properly disclosed to parliamentary authorities.
Sheikh Hasina was removed as prime minister last year following student protests and violence. Bangladesh's interim government has accused the top officials of his administration embezzled money from the banking system to acquire properties abroad. They denied the claims.
While maintaining that he has done nothing wrong, Siddiq has given conflicting explanations for how he got his place at King's Cross. The Mail on Sunday reported that he initially told its reporters that the flat had been bought by his parents.
“The way we understood Tulip and how he got the land has changed,” said a person familiar with his position.
The person added that Siddiq's parents had in fact provided the acquaintance with “financial support” and the developer then transferred the property they owned to Siddiq “as a gesture of gratitude”.
Siddiq did not pay any tax when he got the property because it was a gift and therefore exempt from stamp duty, property purchase tax, the person said.
On Sunday, a person familiar with the matter explained that the financial support given to Motalif by Siddiq's parents was fully repaid before the property was transferred. They said that he is not guilty of stamp duty and that he has received legal advice in this regard.
A senior UK official working on UK anti-kleptocracy policy told the FT: “The challenge here is that 'I got this guy a gift as a thank you because my politically exposed family helped him' kind of account. . . if we waste our time telling the banks is not enough. “