\\\'Proud to be controversial\\\'

Bangladesh-origin Tower Hamlets Mayor Luftur Rahman says he is proud to be embroiled in controversies. Accused of electoral fraud and financial embezzlement, Lutfur claimed the Price Waterhouse Coopers report has not come up with anything unbecoming of him and insisted the Local government minister had misled the parliament. He threatened legal action against UK local government minister Eric Pickles if the minister overstepped the limits of parliamentary conduct. On November 4, a 200-page report by accountants Price Waterhouse Coopers (PwC) was released. It blamed London Tower Hamlets council for handing out hundreds of thousands of pounds in public money to local bodies that were not eligible for it. It also criticised the East London council for ‘failing in its duty to acquire best value for local taxpayers’. Luftur Rahman, an independent politician popular with the Bangladeshi community, was re-elected in May but his victory has been challenged in the High Court amid charges that the vote was riddled with fraud. Communities Secretary Eric Pickles ordered the PwC in April to investigate allegations of poor governance, financial mismanagement and fraud. At an hour-long hearing on Tuesday, he told MPs that there was evidence of ‘cronyism’. After the report was published, the council was barred until 2017 from disbursement of public money, sale of assets and senior appointments at the Council. Three administrators were appointed to keep the local government department informed, according to bdnews24.com.