Sajeeb Wazed describes allegations of corruption as \u201ccompletely bogus\u201d and \u201csmear campaign\u201d
\n NEW DELHI
\nOusted Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina\u2019s son and adviser, Sajeeb Wazed, on Tuesday described allegations of corruption involving the family in the 2015 awarding of a $12.65 billion nuclear power contract as \u201ccompletely bogus\u201d and a \u201csmear campaign\u201d.
\nBangladesh\u2019s Anti Corruption Commission said on Monday it had launched an enquiry into allegations of corruption, embezzlement and money laundering in the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant project, backed by Russia\u2019s state-owned Rosatom.
\nA deal for two power plants, each with a capacity of 1,200 megawatts, was signed in 2015.
\nThe commission has alleged that there were financial irregularities worth about $5 billion involving Hasina, her son Wazed and her niece and British treasury minister Tulip Siddiq, through offshore accounts.
\nRosatom, the world\u2019s largest supplier of enriched uranium, refuted the allegations, adding that it was committed to combat corruption in all its projects and that it maintains a transparent procurement system.
\n\u201cRosatom State Corporation is ready to defend its interests and reputation in court,\u201d it said in an emailed statement to Reuters.
\n\u201cWe consider false statements in the media as an attempt to discredit the Rooppur NPP project, which is being implemented to solve the country\u2019s energy supply problems and is aimed at improving the well-being of the people of Bangladesh,\u201d the statement further read.
\nSiddiq did not respond to a request for comment.
\nA spokesperson for British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Siddiq had denied any involvement in the claims and that he had confidence in her. She will continue her role, the spokesperson added.
\nWazed, speaking on behalf of the family, said they were the targets of a political witch hunt in Bangladesh.
\n\u201cThese are completely bogus allegations and a smear campaign. My family nor I have ever been involved or taken any money from any government projects,\u201d he told Reuters from Washington, where he lives.
\n\u201cIt is not possible to siphon off billions from a $10 billion project. We also don\u2019t have any offshore accounts. I have been living in the US for 30 years, my aunt and cousins in the UK for a similar amount of time. We obviously have accounts here, but none of us have ever seen that kind of money,\u201d he said.
\nReuters could not contact Hasina, who has not been seen in public since fleeing to New Delhi in early August following a deadly uprising against her in Bangladesh. Since then, an interim government has been running the country.
\nThe government in Dhaka said on Monday it had asked India to send Hasina back. New Delhi has confirmed the request but declined further comment.
\nWazeb said the family had not made a decision on Hasina\u2019s return to Bangladesh and that New Delhi had not asked her to seek asylum elsewhere.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Sajeeb Wazed describes allegations of corruption as \u201ccompletely bogus\u201d and \u201csmear campaign\u201d NEW DELHI Ousted Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina\u2019s son and adviser, Sajeeb Wazed, on Tuesday described allegations of corruption involving the family in the 2015 awarding of a $12.65 billion nuclear power contract as \u201ccompletely bogus\u201d and a \u201csmear campaign\u201d. Bangladesh\u2019s Anti Corruption […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":451683,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-451667","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n