A British Muslim who lost her position as a minister because of her religion... and London is investigating

LONDON (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday ordered an investigation into the allegations of a Muslim lawmaker who said she had been fired from her ministerial post because colleagues felt uneasy about her religion.

Nusrat Ghani, 49, who lost her position as Minister of State for Transport in February 2020, told the Sunday Times newspaper on Sunday that an official in charge of party discipline in Parliament had told her that the issue of her being a Muslim had been raised during the discussions regarding her dismissal.

And the newspaper "Sunday Times" quoted a British lawmaker as saying that she was excluded from a ministerial position in the Conservative government headed by Boris Johnson, "because her colleagues felt uncomfortable with her Islamic faith."

But Mark Spencer, the government's chief official for party discipline, said he was the intended person in Ghani's allegations.

"These accusations are completely false and I consider them defamation," he said in a post on Twitter.

"I have never used those words attributed to me," he added.

"The Prime Minister has requested an investigation into the allegations of MP Nusrat Ghani and is taking them seriously," the British government headquarters said.

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