A British-Bangladeshi restaurateur and former UK Government adviser, who rubbed shoulders with several UK prime ministers and A-list dinners has faced modern-day slavery charge.
Fifty-eight-year-old Enam Ali, organiser of the annual British Curry Awards, was arrested after UK police raided a restaurant in Surrey and was released later under investigation, according to the British media.
As organiser of the Awards and Tory donor, Ali is a high-profile figure who has been pictured with Boris Johnson, Theresa May and David Cameron and his A-list diners included actors Johnny Depp and Pierce Brosnan.
In 2008, he was appointed to the UK Home Office advisory panel on the hospitality sector.
Later, Ali lobbied then UK PM Cameron to introduce ‘vindaloo visas’ to bring workers from the Indian subcontinent to fill staff shortages in British curry houses.
According to London-based The Mail on Sunday, the investigation by Surrey police relates to the alleged mistreatment of a Bangladeshi former kitchen worker at Le Raj, in Epsom.
During the raid, police also removed documents and electronic devices.
“A person was arrested on Jul 12 on suspicion of modern slavery offences and released under investigation,” The Mail on Sunday quoted a Surrey Police statement.
The former worker claims he had to work long hours without pay, lived in poor conditions above the restaurant, was denied holidays and was kept on after his five-year visa had expired, the newspaper said quoted a unclosed source.
The man, who is now staying with relatives in West London, is believed to have submitted an application to remain in the UK on humanitarian grounds.
The investigation into Ali will be particularly embarrassing to former UK PM May, who as Home Secretary launched a high-profile campaign to combat modern slavery.
Along with then Mayor of London Boris Johnson, she was a guest at the British Curry Awards in 2014 and posed for photographs wearing a traditional shalwar kameez dress beside Ali.
Cameron was guest of honour at the event in 2013, the same year Ali gave £6,000 to the Conservative Party and three years before he was invited to No 10 and made the case for relaxing immigration rules to provide more staff for Indian restaurants.
Other guests at the annual awards have included the Sarah, Duchess of York.
Born in Bangladesh, Ali came to Britain in his teens and was awarded an MBE in 2009 for his services to the UK hospitality industry.
A Brexiteer, Ali believes leaving the EU will make it easier for Indian and Bangladeshi workers to get UK visas.
Le Raj, which opened in 1989, attracts a star-studded clientele. Its website features photographs of TV stars Eamonn Holmes, Shane Richie and Chris Tarrant and celebrity chefs Heston Blumenthal and James Martin.
Johnny Depp dined at the oak-panelled restaurant two days before the police raid and was pictured with Ali’s son. The Hollywood star was so impressed by Le Raj’s onion bhajis, he told staff he wanted to fly a batch back with him to Los Angeles.
Described on its website as ‘a dining experience like no other’, Le Raj was one of the official food suppliers to athletes at the 2012 London Olympics.
On Jul 27, Ali told the Mail on Sunday that the alleged victim worked at Le Raj as an assistant chef on full pay until May 2015. His employment was terminated as soon as his visa expired.
Ali also claimed that his son Jeffery, 27, took over the ownership of the restaurant in 2014, although he remains close to it.
Ali added: ‘In May 2015, I was informed by the Home Office that an employee no longer had permission to work in the UK.
‘As a result, I had to discontinue his employment. These awful, false allegations have only been made more than four years later, which is just one reason why this has come as such a shock.
‘The allegations are false, incredibly damaging and deeply upsetting. I don’t understand the motivation behind these false claims,’ said the ‘curry king’.