Ex-post office operator claims she was told British Asians were often pushed into theft

Exclusive: Kuldeep Kaur Atwal says auditors urged her to admit to stealing £30,000 – a charge of which she was later cleared

• What is the UK’s Post Office IT scandal about and who is involved?

A former post office operator has come forward claiming she was told British Asian women were often pushed into theft as auditors urged her to confess to stealing £30,000 – a charge of which she was later cleared.

Before her trial in 1997, it was allegedly suggested to Kuldeep Kaur Atwal, then 46, that her cultural background may have played a role in her criminality and that she was likely to receive a custodial sentence unless she admitted to stealing from her branch.