MAYOR FALSIFIED PETITION CLAIMING MP WAS PLANNING ANTI ISLAMIC LAW

Tower Hamlets Mayor Lutfur Rahman falsified a petition by convincing Muslims a local Labour MP was planning an ‘anti-Islamic law’, the High Court heard today (weds).

Rahman allegedly tricked members of the East London Mosque into signing the document at the behest of the Islamic Forum of Europe, a controversial group which has been described as a ‘a secret society’.

According to a statement sent to the Labour Party’s National Executive Committee in 2010, Rahman had been ‘nobbled’ and ‘brainwashed’ by members of the group and ‘arranged’ the petition at the IFE’s request.

Worshippers at the East London Mosque are said to have been told they were signing up to protest against Jim Fitzpatrick MP ‘passing an anti-Islamic law’.

But the header of the document was allegedly altered to transform it into a petition for establishing a directly elected mayor.

The document was referred to at an a trial into the election of Mayor, Rahman who allegedly ‘subverted democracy’ as he oversaw a corrupt campaign.

The 49-year-old politician, who formed his own party, Tower Hamlets First, is being investigated after local campaigners compiled a vast dossier of evidence against him.

Four residents, Andrew Erlam, Debbie Simone, Azmal Hussein and Angela Moffat, plan to call 100 witnesses to back up their claims, after being granted a rare electoral trial.

The former Labour leader of the council and author of the document, Helal Abbas, gave evidence and confirmed his statement was true today (weds).

It was sent by Mr Abbas to Labour’s Executive Committee and contained a host of complaints against Rahman, who was then still a Labour party member.

It has now re-emerged in the case against Rahman and includes a claims that a petition which triggered a referendum on the creation of a directly elected mayor was a sham.

In the signed statement, dated 17 September 2010 Mr Abbas wrote: ‘The whole environment in Tower Hamlets changed after Luthfur [sic] Rahman’s leadership.

‘There was intimidation of those who do not go to prayers. The Imam of Mecca was invited to come to Tower Hamlets for a prayer which was very unusual. None of the leaders of any other faith was invited.

‘The visit was unannounced and was done in secret until the last moment when there were photographs in The Times. This caused a great deal of suspicion.’

Later in the document, Mr Abbas cited supposed links between Rahman and the controversial Islamic Forum of Europe.

He said: ‘IFE’s real aims are to take over influential organisation to use positions to promote its views of Islam. I believe it is funded by the Saudi government. The only two Mosques in London that the Saudi government has put any money into are the Mosque in Regent’s Park and the East London Mosque.

‘In my opinion, Luthfur Rahman has been brainwashed by fundamentalists in IFE and they are using him for the purposes of entry into the Labour party.’

Under the heading ‘The new position of Mayor of Tower Hamlets’, Mr Abbas accused Rahman of rigging a petition which demanded the new office of mayor.

The passage reads: ‘Labour Party policy was to oppose the idea of a directly elected Mayor. Luthfur Rahman initially said that he was against it as well but he changed his position.

‘He was persuaded because he was nobbled by the IFE and people at the East London Mosque. He arranged a petition with 17,000 signatures in favour of having a directly elected Mayor. A number of the signatures were collected in the East London Mosque but this was done by fraud.

‘People were told that Jim Fitzpatrick MP [Poplar and Limehouse] was planning on passing an anti-Islamic law and they signed the petition thinking that this was what they were signed up for. In fact the header on the petition was added later.

‘A proportion of the signatures were obtained in this way by deception. In addition, some non-residents signed and some signatures were illegible. However under the Local Government Act 2000, a petition of this type showing support by 5% of the electorate was needed for a referendum and the petition triggered that.’

The trial has been brought by four petitioners, Tower Hamlets residents Andrew Erlam, Debbie Simone, Azmal Hussein and Angela Moffat.

If Commissioner Richard Mawrey QC finds allegations of corruption proved, he has the power to declare the election void.

Mayor Rahman denies any wrongdoing.

The trial continues.
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