Rooppur nuclear power project is for well-being of people of Bangladesh: Rosatom

A view of the Rooppur nuclear powerplant in Bangladesh. File photo

Russian nuclear major Rosatom on Tuesday (December 24, 2024) said the Bangladesh anti-graft commission’s remarks are “an attempt to discredit” the Rooppur nuclear power project. In a statement issued to the media, Rosatom reiterated that the $2.65 billion Rooppur project is transparent and that it is ready to defend the case in a court of law.

“Rosatom is committed to a policy of openness and the principle of combating corruption in all its projects and maintains a transparent procurement system. External audits regularly confirm the openness of the business processes of the project. Rosatom State Corporation is ready to defend its interests and reputation in court,” Rosatom said in a statement sent to The Hindu.

The statement from Rosatom came a day after the Anti-Corruption Commission of Bangladesh came out with a statement alleging that deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her family members including her niece the UK MP Tulip Siddiq laundered around $900 million to offshore outfits in Malaysia. The commission cited an internal investigative report and stated that it has discovered around $5 billion “irregularities” in the Rooppur nuclear power project that has been under the works since 2011.

Rosatom described the anti-corruption outfit of Bangladesh as “provocative” and said, “We consider false statements in the media as an attempt to discredit the Rooppur NPP project, which is being implemented to solve the country’s energy supply problems and is aimed at improving the well-being of the people of Bangladesh.”

The Hindu had reported earlier, that Tulip Siddiq who is a Labour MP in the United Kingdom and has been facing scrutiny in the UK since the fall of the government of her aunt Sheikh Hasina, was involved in an elaborate scheme to launder money that involved her paternal uncle Tarique Ahmed Siddique. Tulip Siddiq and her family members are stakeholders in a company named Prochchaya which along with another entity Destinty Group had laundered $900 million, the Anti-Corruption Commission in Bangladesh had alleged.