Devlet Bahçeli , the leader of Turkey’s far-right Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), has called for a radical re-structuring of Turkey’s Constitutional Court or its complete closure, the Anka news agency reported.
In a written statement Bahçeli called on the government to make sweeping changes to the court’s structure, including revising its member composition and procedures to align with national security needs. In the event there is a failure in making the necessary changes, he suggested the court be dissolved entirely.
The statement came amid Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s urging parliament to start drafting a new constitution. Earlier in May, Erdoğan had pointed to tensions between the Supreme Court of Appeals and the Constitutional Court over a ruling to flaws in the existing constitution.
Turkey has witnessed a judicial crisis sparked by the imprisonment of an opposition lawmaker who was kept behind bars despite two favorable decisions from the Constitutional Court.
The Supreme Court of Appeals, which upheld an 18-year sentence for lawmaker Can Atalay in what many claim was a politically motivated trial, refused to act in line with the Constitutional Court’s decisions and filed criminal complaints against members of the top court due to their ruling, a first in the judicial history of Turkey.
Atalay was eventually stripped of his parliamentary status this year in defiance of the successive rulings by the Constitutional Court. In such highly politicized legal cases, Erdoğan and his government have sought ways to curb the Constitutional Court.
Bahçeli also targeted the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party), which he labeled the “militia wing” of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), for receiving nearly 940 million lira (over $ 27 million) in state funds annually. He said this money could be better used in the fight against terrorism and to support families of soldiers who had died during clashes with the PKK.
The PKK has led an insurgency since the 1980s that has claimed around 40,000 lives in Turkey. The group is designated as a terrorist organization by Turkey and its Western allies, though the DEM Party denies any ties to the group.
Bahçeli demanded immediate action on immunity cases against DEM Party lawmakers, accusing them of aiding terrorism. Bahçeli called for parliament to redefine the limits of parliamentary immunity, claiming the protection was being misused by those engaged in anti-state activities.
In response, the DEM Party harshly criticized Bahçeli on X, accusing him of inciting anti-Kurdish sentiment and undermining democracy and the rule of law.
“With his latest statement, Bahçeli is fanning the flames of Kurdish hostility, stoking intolerance against our party and challenging the remnants of Turkey’s constitutional order,” the party said in a statement. The DEM Party condemned Bahçeli for what it described as a “coup-minded mentality” for advocating the suspension of the constitutional order.
The party added that Bahçeli’s approach had become one of the biggest challenges to democracy, human rights and the rule of law in Turkey.
The DEM Party, a key pro-Kurdish political force in Turkey, has faced years of systemic pressure, legal challenges and violent attacks. Party leaders, including Selahattin Demirtaş, lawmakers and activists, have been arrested on terrorism-related charges they claim are politically motivated.
Despite these challenges, the party has continued to secure seats in parliament while advocating for Kurdish rights, democracy and peace.
