A Turkish court has officially ordered the arrest of Istanbul’s mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, a key opponent of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, ordering his imprisonment on Sunday until trial conclusion on corruption charges.
The arrest of Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, following a home raid, has triggered Turkey’s largest demonstrations in over ten years, raising global concerns on state of democracy and legal governance in the country.
The incarceration is being viewed as a strategic effort to eliminate a significant challenger from the presidential election set for 2028, as reported by the Associated Press.
However, government representatives have denied claims of political motivation behind legal actions against opposition members, maintaining that Turkish courts function autonomously.
The arrest coincided with the mayor’s party, the Republican People’s Party or called CHP, initiating a primary presidential election to support Imamoglu’s candidacy despite his detention.
The CHP has established representative voting stations countrywide – termed “solidarity boxes” – enabling non-party members to demonstrate support for the mayor. “Honestly, we are embarrassed in the name of our legal system,” Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavas, a fellow member of Imamoglu’s CHP, told reporters, criticising the lack of confidentiality in the proceedings. “We learned from television pundits about the allegations that even lawyers did not have access to, showing how politically motivated this whole ordeal has been,” he said.
In regards of the arrest, Imamoglu faced several criminal charges prior to his detention, potentially resulting in imprisonment and political restrictions. He was contesting a 2022 conviction for allegedly insulting Turkey’s Supreme Electoral Council members.
Recently, a university invalidated his degree, citing transfer irregularities from a northern Cyprus private university three decades ago. This decision effectively prevents his presidential candidacy, as the role requires university qualification. However, Imamoglu pledged to contest this ruling.
Imamoglu secured Istanbul’s mayoral position in March 2019, dealing a significant setback to Erdogan and his Justice and Development Party, which had governed Istanbul for 25 years. Erdogan’s party had contested the city’s election results, citing irregularities. This challenge led to a repeated election months later, which Imamoglu won again.
The mayor maintained his position after local elections last year, where the CHP achieved substantial victories against Erdogan’s ruling party.
