The offense of insulting public officials, for which Imamoglu is accused, carries a maximum sentence of four years in prison
Turkish prosecutor today asked a court to convict the mayor of Istanbul Ekrem Imamoglu for insulting public officials and to impose deprivation of civil rights.
52-year-old Imamoglu, who was not present in court, is on trial for a speech in 2019 about the mayoral elections that were annulled that year, in which he said those who made the decision to repeat the elections were “idiots”.
Opinion polls suggest Imamoglu would be a strong challenge to Erdogan if the former runs for president in next year’s election. The largest opposition party has not yet chosen a presidential candidate.
The court adjourned to consider defense counsel’s request to recuse the judge. He set the next hearing for December 14. The offense for which Imamoglu is accused carries a maximum sentence of four years in prison.
“The fact that the prosecutor expressed an opinion without considering our request to exclude the judge is against the legal procedural rules and it shows that they came prepared with the decision,” said Gyokhan Gunaidin, Imamoglu’s lawyer.
Any prison sentence or deprivation of civil rights would have to be upheld by an appeals court, potentially extending the process beyond the date of the elections, which should be held no later than June 2023.
The governor of the region issued a statement banning demonstrations in the region for today, while police cordoned off streets near the court on the Asian side of Istanbul.
At least 1,000 people gathered in support of Imamoglu in a city square about 2 km away, which had been exempted from the ban. The crowd held his party’s banners and chanted “you will never be alone”.
“I am ashamed of this court. I couldn’t care less,” Imamoglu said in an interview with Fox TV this morning.
The outcome of Turkey’s 2023 election will depend on the ability of Imamoglu’s Republican People’s Party (CHP) and others in the opposition to join forces against Erdogan and the AK Party, which has ruled for two decades.
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