Tulip Siddiq was asked to intervene in the case of a British-trained lawyer arrested by secret police in Bangladesh, where her aunt is the PM
A LABOUR MP was today forced to apologise for threatening a pregnant journalist who quizzed her over her links to the Bangladeshi government.
Tulip Siddiq was asked to respond to calls for her to intervene to help a lawyer caught up in an oppressive crackdown on dissidents in Bangladesh, where her aunt is the Prime Minister.
But the Labour MP refused to answer and told a reporter: "You'd better be very careful."
And then she turned to a pregnant producer and said: "Hope you have a great birth, because child labour is hard. See you."
Today she admitted her comments were "off-hand and ill-judged" and apologised for upsetting the journalist, Daisy Ayliffe.
Ms Siddiq has led the campaign to free British citizen Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe from an Iranian jail.
During a rally in support of Nazanin, Channel 4 asked her if she would also help British-trained lawyer Ahmad bin Quasem.
He was apparently abducted by secret police in Bangladesh and his whereabouts is now unknown.
Ms Siddiq said she had not heard of him, although his mother and other campaigners have written to her about the case.
She then said: "I'm a Labour MP for Hampstead and Kilburn, I'm a British Member of Parliament. Be very careful.
"I'm not Bangladeshi and the person you are talking about, I have no idea about their case. That is the end of my statement."
The MP's aides tried to cover the camera and expressed anger to the journalists.
As she walked away, Ms Siddiq then made her remark to the pregnant producer.
Campaigners claim the Labour MP would be able to help Mr bin Quasem by simply speaking to her aunt Sheikh Hasina, the country's PM since 2008.
Despite claiming not to have links to Bangladesh, Ms Siddiq has previously described herself as a "spokesperson" for her aunt's political party.
Channel 4 News has made an official complaint to Labour about the MP's behaviour, but she responded by reporting them to the police.
In a climbdown, Ms Siddiq said today: "I want to apologise unreservedly for my comments to Channel 4’s producer, which were and off-hand and ill-judged attempt to deal with what I felt was a hostile situation. I would never want to upset her and I hope she accepts my apology.
"With regard to the Channel 4 News report itself, and as I made clear prior to the event on Saturday, I was born in London and serve as a British Member of Parliament.
"The focus of my work is spent on delivering for the residents of Hampstead and Kilburn who elected me to represent them.
"The fact some members of my family are involved in politics in Bangladesh has long been a matter of public record which I have not hidden from. That said, I have no capability nor desire to influence politics in Bangladesh.”
Other MPs questioned Ms Siddiq's claim that she can only speak out about cases which involve her own constituents.
The SNP's Stewart McDonald said today: "How strange that she pretends to know nothing about it and refuses to engage.
"Nazanin is Tulip’s constituent but it hasn’t stopped me raising her case - or several other MPs."
Labour said they had not received a complaint and would investigate it if one is received.
