The mayor of Istanbul Imamoglu in court as a Turkish opposition is afraid of fighting | Political news

Ekrem Imamoglu denies accusations that he has tried to influence the Turkiye judicial system in remarks he has made for the officials.

Mayor Ecrem immamoglA leading opposition figure and potential competitor of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan appeared in court to deny the accusations that he had tried to influence the judiciary.

The 53 -year -old Imamoglu appeared at the Istanbul Court of Justice on Friday to face charges of threat, insult and referring an official and attempt to influence the process.

“I did not participate in any actions aimed at any person. It is impossible for me to act this way. I do not accept the allegations against me, “Imamoglu told prosecutors.

The allegations were filed for criticism of Imamoglu to legal cases filed against municipalities governed by the opposition, including his own Republican People's Party (CHP). His testimony is related to remarks, he made a prosecutor and a court expert.

The case against him is the latest in a series of legal challenges that opposition politicians face in Turks, where rights groups have stated that judicial independence has been eroded during Erdogan's rule in two decades.

Imamoglu has already been convicted of offensive members of the Turkish Supreme Election Board and is faced with a political ban if his sentence in 2022 was upheld in appeal. He is also in charge of accusing that he has participated in the alleged bids in auction dating back to 2015.

Thousands of his supporters gathered out of court on Friday to protest the legal action against Imamoglu.

Tension escalates when Riot police blocked a CHP bus from the Courthouse approaching. This move led to clashes between protesters and police who reacted with tear gas. It was unclear if arrests had been made.

Later, Imamoglu turned to the crowds from the top of the bus elsewhere.

“Today's question is … a question about seeking rights and justice,” the mayor said. “Unfortunately, today's number comes from a conspiracy created against Istanbul.”

Ankara mayor of Ankara Mansour Javas, who was there to support Imoglu, also accused the government of turning Turkish into an Open Prison.

Turkish authorities regularly target critical journalists, lawyers and elected political representatives with criminal charges, especially after an unsuccessful coup in 2016 against the Erdogan government.

“The government is trying to limit the space for opponents, including journalists, and intimidates them with unfair accusations,” says the 71 -year -old Fetti Kocaer, who was among the crowd outside the court, before the AFP AF. He was holding a banner with a reading: “We'll fight together.”

“The courage and the strong position of the mayor Imamoglu will help to unite us. We will not give up, but we will increase the fight against injustice. “

Imamoglu was chosen for the first time to lead Istanbul in March 2019. His victory was a blow to the Erdogan (AK) Party, who, along with the predecessor party, controlled Istanbul for a quarter of a century.

The AK party insisted on canceling the municipal elections, the results of a city of 16 million people, claiming irregularities. The challenge led to a recurrence of the election several months later, which Imamoglu also won.

Imamoglu was re-elected mayor of the largest city of Turkish last year.

In recent years, Turkish authorities have removed a number of elected mayors from CHP and Prokurdish Party, saying they were related to investigations related to “terrorism”.

Emma Sinclair-WEB, director of Turkiye at Human Rights Watch, said on Friday that the practice of removing mayors and appointing government custody undermines democracy.

“This is a big attack on voters' rights to choose their elected representatives and a violation of the right to release and fair elections,” Sinclair-WEBB told the Reuters Agency.

“At a time when the government talks about resolving the Kurdish conflict, it is terrifying and puzzling to monitor these measures to continue against democratically elected employees. This practice is flying before any positive conflict decision, “she added.