A court in Bangladesh’s capital on Thursday directed authorities to seek an Interpol red notice against British lawmaker Tulip Siddiq in connection with alleged corruption linked to a private real estate project.
Siddiq, a Member of Parliament representing Hampstead and Highgate in London and a former British minister, is facing corruption charges in Bangladesh, as the country’s Anti-Corruption Commission continues its investigation. She has already been sentenced to six years in prison in three separate corruption cases, all of which are connected to her aunt, former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
Hasina was removed from office in 2024 following a student-led mass uprising that brought an end to her 15-year tenure. She has been living in exile in India since August 5, 2024. Siddiq has consistently denied the allegations, dismissing the rulings against her as a ‘complete farce’. She has emphasised that she is a British citizen and not a Bangladeshi national.
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According to Bangladesh’s Anti-Corruption Commission, Siddiq allegedly used her relationship with Hasina to influence the allocation of land to a private company in Dhaka’s upscale Gulshan neighbourhood. Siddiq is the daughter of Hasina’s younger sister, Sheikh Rehana.
The order to pursue a red notice was issued by Dhaka Metropolitan Senior Special Judge Mohammed Sabbir Faiz, following a petition filed by the anti-graft body. The Commission’s Assistant Director, AKM Mortuza Ali Sagar, requested the court to facilitate the process through Interpol to enable Siddiq’s arrest.
There was no immediate response from Siddiq following Thursday’s court decision.
Earlier, in January last year, Siddiq resigned from her post as economic secretary to the Treasury in the Cabinet of Prime Minister Keir Starmer amid mounting pressure over her links to Hasina. At the time, she maintained that she had been cleared of wrongdoing but stepped down to prevent the matter from becoming ‘a distraction from the work of the government’.
After Hasina’s ouster, Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus assumed leadership as interim head of government and later oversaw national elections held on February 12. The newly formed government is now led by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, son of Hasina’s chief political rival and former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia.
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