A Turkish state news agency, Anadolu, reported on Sunday that popular, imprisoned mayor and Erdoğan rival Ekrem Imamoğlu will not be released as demanded by thousands of sympathizers in the country, but will instead be taken into custody immediately. The charge brought by the court still remains “corruption”.
According to the agency’s report, the court confirmed to Anadolu Agency that the investigations launched by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office against Imamoğlu and “99 suspects” will continue. The indictment includes the following points:
“Leadership of a criminal organization, membership in a criminal organization, extortion, bribery, qualified fraud and unauthorized seizure of personal data and manipulation of offers.”
Against seven suspects, including the mayor and potential presidential candidate of his party against Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the Istanbul Deputy Mayor’s Secretary Mahir Polat and Şişli Mayor Resul Emrah Şahan, another accusation is “support for the terrorist organization PKK/KCK”.
Imamoğlu had immediately denied all the accusations against him after his arrest on March 19, calling them part of a “smear campaign”. The now-ordered pre-trial detention is justified in connection with the corruption investigations. The accused stated on Saturday:
“The unmoral and groundless accusations, which range from invented reports to the time of the investigations, aim to undermine my reputation and credibility.”
Since the arrest, there have been nationwide protests and solidarity demonstrations, including in Istanbul, despite the governor of the province ordering a ban on demonstrations, gatherings and news until Sunday. According to the CHP, around 300,000 people participated in the protests in Istanbul on Friday. The CHP Chairman, Özgür Özel, described Imamoğlu’s arrest as a “civil coup”.
The court’s decision was made regardless of the fact that, besides the nationwide protests, leading European politicians had criticized the legal action against Imamoğlu as purely politically motivated. At the EU summit in Brussels, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz described Imamoğlu’s imprisonment as “a very, very bad sign”. The event was “depressing for democracy in Turkey, but certainly also depressing for the relationship between Europe and Turkey”, Scholz said. He further stated:
“We can only demand that this be stopped immediately and that the opposition and the government compete with each other, rather than putting the opposition on trial.”
The head of the Turkish Media Supervision, Ebubekir Sahin, threatened in an X-posting on the topic of alleged “untrue reporting”:
“We are calling on the media once again to not rely on partisan and untrue reporting, but to only publish official information and statements from the relevant authorities.”
In the event of violations, corresponding measures will be taken, which “can reach as far as long-term broadcast bans and ultimately even license revocation”, Sahin said. He spoke of a “final warning”. According to agency reports, some stations subsequently stopped their live coverage of demonstrations in the country.
Imamoğlu is expected to be nominated as a presidential candidate of the party despite the dynamics and his current transfer to pre-trial detention on Sunday. At the nationwide party vote, 1.7 million CHP members are called upon to cast their vote. The next regular presidential election in Turkey is scheduled to take place in 2028.