Johnson orders probe into Muslim MP’s claim

London, January 24

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday ordered an internal Cabinet Office inquiry into allegations by a Pakistani-origin MP that she was sacked from her ministerial post due to her Muslim faith.

Conservative Party MP Nusrat Ghani had said in a ‘Sunday Times’ interview that at a post-reshuffle meeting in February 2020 with the party whips, or MPs in charge of party discipline, she was told that her “‘Muslimness’ was raised as an ‘issue’, that my ‘Muslim woman minister’ status was making colleagues uncomfortable.”

Chief Tory Whip Mark Spencer said over the weekend that he was the whip in question and described Ghani’s allegations as “completely false”.

On Monday, Downing Street confirmed that Johnson has asked the Cabinet Office to carry out an inquiry into the allegations. Ghani welcomed the investigation in a statement on Twitter. She said: “As I said to the PM last night all I want is for this to be taken seriously and for him to investigate. I welcome his decision to do that now. The terms of reference of the inquiry must include all that was said in Downing Street and by the whip. I look forward to seeing the terms of reference.” —