İstanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu has accused President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan of attempting to sideline him in politics through judicial conspiracies and called on him to engage in an “honest” fight after prosecutors drafted a new indictment against him.
The most recent indictment seeks a prison sentence of up to four years and a political ban due to his criticism of a court-appointed expert witness, whom he accused of bias.
The mayor, a member of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), ended the ruling Justice and Development Party’s (AKP) years-long control of İstanbul in the 2019 local election. Since then, he has frequently been targeted by legal action.
In a series of posts on X, İmamoğlu said the indictment marks the fifth time he has faced the prospect of a political ban as well as a total of more than 25 years in prison.
“The person trying to sideline me from politics is obvious — it is Mr. President,” İmamoğlu, the mostly likely candidate to challenge Erdoğan if he tries to seek another term as president, wrote. “I am calling on the president to be honest. This nation loves the brave and the honorable.”
Erdoğan, however, denies involvement in the investigations into İmamoğlu. When asked about the legal action against the mayor last Friday, Erdoğan told reporters, “I don’t care if a political ban is imposed on anyone.”
Fahrettin Altun, communications director for President Erdoğan, rejected İmamoğlu’s accusations against the president on Monday, calling attempts to link ongoing legal actions to Erdoğan “a great slander” and “an effort to disrupt judicial proceedings.”
In the latest indictment, İmamoğlu is charged with “attempting to influence a judicial officer, expert or witness.”
The case stems from a news conference in late January, during which İmamoğlu alleged that expert witness Satılmış Büyükcanayakın was “cherry-picked” to draft reports against CHP mayors in Istanbul to sway court proceedings. His comments came amid increasing legal pressure on CHP politicians, which has led to the arrest and removal from office of several mayors in recent months.
The İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office launched an investigation into the mayor shortly after the news conference, accusing him of “attempting to influence a judicial officer, expert or witness” and “attempting to influence a fair trial.”
Prosecutors also indicted five journalists, one of whom is in pretrial detention, from the pro-opposition Halk TV station. They are accused of broadcasting an interview with Büyükcanayakın without permission and allegedly exposing his identity in a way that could make him a target and influence court proceedings.
The mayor, who is also fighting several other legal cases, had already been sentenced to more than two years in prison and barred from politics in December 2022 for allegedly insulting members of Turkey’s Supreme Election Board (YSK). The mayor faces a political ban if his conviction is upheld by an appeals court.
