Lawyers for Mehmet Murat Çalık, the mayor of İstanbul‘s Beylikdüzü district, have filed a petition with the İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office requesting his release from prison on urgent health grounds, as concerns mount over what opposition figures describe as a sweeping crackdown on the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP).
According to the TR724 news website, Çalık, who has previously undergone treatment for leukemia and lymphoma, has reportedly lost around 15 kilograms in custody and is experiencing thyroid-related health issues. His lawyers argue that continued arrest threatens his life, especially considering his fight with cancer and the prison environment.
In a joint statement attorneys Fatih Selami Mahmutoğlu, Melih Koçhan and Cihan Ünal invoked Article 103 of Turkey’s Code of Criminal Procedure, citing the urgent need for release on medical grounds. “The prison conditions are unsuitable for someone in his condition. Without urgent intervention, irreversible harm may occur,” they said.
Çalık was detained on March 19 during the early stages of a large-scale investigation targeting İstanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu and his close circle. He spent several days in custody before a court formally arrested him on March 23 on charges that include corruption-related offenses such as bribery and membership in a criminal organization.
He was first held in the notorious Silivri Prison in İstanbul and later transferred to Buca Prison in İzmir, a move his legal team strongly opposed due to the distance from his medical care and support network.
Following Çalık’s arrest, the Interior Ministry suspended him from office under Article 127 of the Turkish Constitution and Article 47 of Municipal Law No. 5393.
CHP Deputy Chair Gökhan Zeybek condemned Çalık’s continued imprisonment, stating, “Keeping someone who is undergoing medical treatment behind bars is a life-threatening injustice. There is no trace of legal grounds in this arrest. The public will not forget this unfairness.”
Özgür Çelik, chair of the CHP’s İstanbul provincial branch, echoed the call for Çalık’s immediate release. “Our mayor was jailed on baseless allegations and moved hundreds of kilometers from his doctors and family. The risk to his health cannot be ignored. Mehmet Murat Çalık must be released immediately.”
The crackdown on opposition figures has intensified since the arrest of İmamoğlu, a leading challenger to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in the 2028 presidential race. İmamoğlu was detained on March 19 and later jailed on corruption charges widely viewed as politically motivated, sparking mass protests and heightening political tensions across the country. The investigation has since expanded to target 47 municipal officials and opposition figures, resulting in 30 arrests. Critics say the sweeping probe is aimed at weakening the opposition and consolidating power ahead of a potential snap election.
