A Turkish court has sentenced former main opposition leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu to 11 months, 20 days in prison on charges of insulting the president, Turkish Minute reported.
The ruling was handed down Tuesday by the Mersin 3rd Criminal Court of First Instance, which found Kılıçdaroğlu guilty due to remarks he made about President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in speeches delivered over the course of several years.
The court’s decision is subject to appeal, and it was not immediately clear whether the sentence would be suspended.
The case stems from comments Kılıçdaroğlu made at a rally in Mersin in 2014, when Erdoğan was serving as prime minister, as well as speeches in Edirne in 2016 and later remarks during parliamentary group meetings.
Kılıçdaroğlu, who led the Republican People’s Party (CHP) for more than a decade and ran as the opposition bloc’s presidential candidate in 2023, has long accused Erdoğan of corruption. The charges relate in part to statements he made following the December 17-25, 2013, corruption investigations, when he referred to Erdoğan as “Başçalan,” or “chief thief.”
Erdoğan has denied the allegations, describing the investigations as a plot orchestrated by the faith-based Gülen movement, a former ally he accuses of attempting to overthrow his government.
Prosecutors launched the investigation in 2024 after Kılıçdaroğlu’s tenure as CHP leader and member of parliament ended. He gave testimony in November 2024 at a court in Ankara.
In his defense, Kılıçdaroğlu said he did not regret his remarks while delivering a sharp critique of Erdoğan’s government, accusing it of corruption, authoritarianism and economic mismanagement.
“I am standing here not as someone accused of theft or embezzlement,” he said, “but as someone who dared to call a thief a thief.”
Prosecutors had sought up to 11 years in prison and a political ban. The court ultimately sentenced him to 11 months, 20 days.
Kılıçdaroğlu’s lawyer, Celal Çelik, criticized the ruling as unlawful and politically motivated, telling Turkish media the defense would appeal and expressing confidence that the decision would be overturned.
After losing the 2023 presidential election, Kılıçdaroğlu was voted out as CHP leader but remains an influential figure in opposition politics.
The verdict is the latest in a series of cases in Turkey involving the charge of insulting the president, a criminal offense under Article 299 of the Turkish Penal Code that has been widely criticized by press freedom advocates for its use against politicians, journalists and ordinary citizens.
