Ankara prosecutor presses new charges against CHP leader, MPs

ANKARA

The Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office has prepared summary of proceedings for main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu and two other CHP deputies, along with two MPs from the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP).

The legal action against Kılıçdaroğlu came after a complaint by the High Election Board over his comments aired on private broadcaster Fox TV on Sept. 12, when he was speaking about the April 16 referendum on shifting to an executive presidential system, the prosecutor’s office stated on Dec. 13.

Another summary of proceedings was prepared for the deputy chair of CHP’s parliamentary group, Özgür Özel, for allegedly breaking a door in parliament in order to take a computer and display it at the general assembly.

CHP deputy Sezgin Tanrıkulu may also face legal action over his statements about civilian causalities during military operations supported by unmanned aerial vehicles.

Prosecutors have also sent the Justice Ministry motions for Kurdish issue-focused HDP deputy Sibel Yiğitalp over comments on Twitter, and her fellow lawmaker Ayşe Acar Başaran for a speech in August.

CHP lawmaker Enis Berberoğlu, HDP co-chair Selahattin Demirtaş, former HDP co-chair Figen Yüksekdağ and nine other HDP lawmakers are currently in jail on several charges.

Separately, the Constitutional Court has announced that it will file a criminal complaint against senior officials of the CHP for not providing necessary documents and not cooperating in 2013 audits of the party’s accounts.

The unanimous verdict of the Court was published in the Official Gazette on Dec. 12.

The Court stated that it found irregularities in the main opposition party’s documents on incomes and expenditures in its 2013 accounts.

The verdict noted that 108,797 Turkish Liras had been added to the CHP’s revenues not in due form, ordering the transfer of this amount of money from the party to the Treasury.

It also added that a number of documents and information sought by the Constitutional Court had not been provided by the CHP, in addition to attempts to hinder the Court’s investigation of the party’s books. As a result, the Court said it will file a criminal complaint against some party officials over lack of cooperation.