Bangladesh threatens Tulip Siddiq with Interpol arrest warrant
The UK has been a member of Interpol since 1928, but this case would test how far that co-operation stretches when one of Westminster's own was implicated, he said.
In case of the UK Government's non-compliance to the Interpol Red notice, he said Bangladesh might ultimately proceed with a trial in absentia. 'There are provisions of trial in absentia and we may end up doing that,' he said.
The ACC official said they would deliver the arrest warrant to Ms Siddiq through its High Commission in London. 'After a proven period of non appearance of the accused, we will ask the Ministry of Home to contact Interpol headquarters and process the request to the host government. Interpol itself cannot arrest, but expedite the process towards a conclusion,' he said.
Ms Siddiq is facing an arrest warrant after a Bangladeshi court confirmed the ACC charges against her, accusing her of abuse of power and influence to acquire plots for herself and family members from her despot aunt's government.
The ACC believes the former City minister received a 7,200 sq ft plot in the diplomatic zone of the capital Dhaka through 'abuse of power and influence'.
The ACC also alleges that Ms Siddiq abused her position and influence as a British MP to persuade her aunt, Sheikh Hasina the former prime minister, to allocate three plots of land to members of her immediate family.
According to the documents, under the influence of Ms Siddiq, the former Prime Minister approved one plot each for Ms Siddiq's mother, Sheikh Rehana, 69; her brother, Radwan, 44; and her younger sister, Azmina, 34. All three are based in Britain.
It is part of a wider investigation into the alleged unlawful allocation of state-owned land to Ms Hasina, the ousted prime minister of Bangladesh, her children and close relatives.
The case is separate from a £4 billion embezzlement investigation by the ACC into a nuclear deal struck by Ms Hasina, in which Ms Siddiq had also been named.
Ms Siddiq, who resigned from the Government in January amid scrutiny of her links to Ms Hasina, has been named in three Bangladeshi inquiries. She has denied the charges and accused the Bangladeshi government of a 'targeted and baseless' campaign against her and asked why it had briefed the media but not put its allegations to her directly.
Sheikh Hasina, Ms Siddiq's aunt, and several others face possible detention after charges filed by ACC.
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