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A local authority in Greater Manchester faces calls for an urgent governance investigation after a sitting cabinet member came under intense public scrutiny regarding her family's connection to a convicted terrorism offender.
Reform UK Councillor Shadman Zaman, an elected member for Pilkington Park who spent his early childhood in Bangladesh, has formally called for the immediate resignation of Councillor Ayesha Arif, the Labour Cabinet Member for Housing Services on Bury Council.
The demand follows proceedings at Manchester Crown Court where her 20-year-old son, Muhammad Zakir Arif, was sentenced to three years in custody with an additional year on licence, alongside a five-year Serious Crime Prevention Order. He pleaded guilty to four counts of possessing material useful to a terrorist under Section 58 of the Terrorism Act 2000 and three counts of prison security offences under the Prisons Act 1952.
Court disclosures revealed that police uncovered material instructing individuals on terror tactics, including manuals on starting wildfires, alongside WhatsApp communications from 2023 expressing a desire to travel abroad to commit terrorist acts. Evidence presented in court indicated that while his mother and sister attempted to persuade him against travelling by asking him to remain a "dutiful son," political representatives highlight that statutory safeguarding authorities were not notified.
"The court hasn't implied any association by guilt, and neither am I," stated Cllr Zaman, 34, in a statement told to journalists. "What I am implying is a shocking lack of judgment based on what is available in open court reporting. Failing to report this kind of material is precisely the gap that safeguarding and PREVENT exist to close."
Cllr Zaman, who migrated to the UK after spending his early childhood in Bangladesh where he witnessed public rallies glorifying terrorist acts, emphasized that his background underlines the vital importance of early intervention and UK safeguarding frameworks. This report was prepared for publication in Daily Dazzling Dawn.
The court noted that Arif was previously jailed in September 2024 for assaulting a counter-terrorism officer during questioning and possessing bladed weapons. While serving that sentence at HMP Forest Bank, authorities discovered illicit mobile phones inside his cell used to contact associates outside. Sentencing Judge HHJ Conrad KC remarked that the defendant demonstrated no desire to rehabilitate.
Opposition representatives have formally requested the Chief Executive of Bury Council to examine whether municipal resources were involved in connection with the legal proceedings and to clarify local governance standards. Bury Council and the local Labour group have been requested to comment on the matter.
