Tulip says she has become a casualty of Bangladesh’s dirty politics

Tulip says she has become a casualty of Bangladesh’s dirty politics.

Aug 11, 2025 - 14:23
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Tulip says she has become a casualty of Bangladesh’s dirty politics
Tulip says she has become a casualty of Bangladesh’s dirty politics.

British MP Tulip Siddiq, niece of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, has said that Bangladesh’s “dirty politics” has upended her life.

In an exclusive interview with The Guardian, Siddiq described her indictment in a graft case as fallout from a broader political conflict. “The truth is that I’m collateral damage in the feud between Muhammad Yunus and my aunt,” she said.

“These are larger forces I’m up against. There’s no doubt wrongdoing exists in Bangladesh and that those responsible should face justice — but I’m not one of them.”

She faces charges of allegedly using her family ties to secure plots of land in Purbachal, Dhaka, for her mother, brother, and sister — an accusation she called “completely absurd.” A trial date has been set for 11 August, with over 20 other defendants also implicated.

Asked whether she would attend in person or via videolink, Siddiq said she was seeking advice from barrister Hugo Keith KC. “I’ve yet to see an official summons… I’m supposedly days away from a showcase trial in a foreign country, and I still don’t know what the charges are. It feels like a Kafkaesque nightmare.”

Siddiq, who represented Hampstead and Highgate and served as a Treasury minister until January, noted that “there’s no extradition treaty” between the UK and Bangladesh — something she confirmed herself. She learned of the indictment only a week earlier, through a journalist contacting her lawyer. Bangladeshi authorities have indicated she could be tried in absentia, with extradition possibly considered if convicted.

“I’m not here to defend my aunt,” she said. “I know there’s an investigation into how her government ended, and I hope the people of Bangladesh get the closure they deserve.”

Addressing separate allegations of embezzling $5 billion from a Russian nuclear power deal — linked to a 2013 photo of her with Hasina and Vladimir Putin in Moscow — Siddiq said she had no political role on that trip. “My sister and I flew from London to visit my aunt in Russia. We were sightseeing, dining out, and shopping. On the final day, there was a reception for politicians’ families, and that’s when the photo was taken. I met Putin for two minutes.”

She also denied claims of being gifted a London flat, explaining it belonged to her godfather, and that a previous comment suggesting her parents bought it stemmed from their faulty memories. She said she later moved into another property for security reasons after being warned of a threat, paying market rent.

Siddiq added that she resigned from her government role to prevent the story from distracting the administration, despite continued support from Labour leader Keir Starmer.

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