New indictment seeks up to 3 years in prison for HDP’s Demirtaş

ANKARA

Main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) Leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu has defended former Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) Co-Chair Selahattin Demirtaş against a new indictment prepared by prosecutors over the jailed politician’s criticisms regarding Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor Yüksel Kocaman.

“These kinds of claims will be taken by Selahattin Demirtaş, and he will wear it as a medal of honor on his chest,” Kılıçdaroğlu told private broadcaster Halk TV on Sept. 23, elaborating on the indictment.

“A prosecutor [Kocaman] can get married, we can also congratulate him because he got married. But if he takes a breath in the palace and gives a photo, that is not right. We can no longer call him the prosecutor of the Republic,” Kılıçdaroğlu said.

“What did he say? The prosecutor should pay attention to it. Won’t the prosecutor be criticized or the judge? It will be an injustice if I will not criticize injustice. If one sees what someone says and accepts it as an instruction the next day and prepares an indictment immediately, on the other hand, if you do not prepare indictments for those who have been waiting in prisons for months, you cannot talk about justice in that country,” Kılıçdaroğlu said.

Kılıçdaroğlu also reiterated that former CHP lawmaker Enis Berberoğlu’s rights should be given back after a Constitutional Court ruling that said that his rights were violated.

Turkish prosecutors have prepared a new indictment against Demirtaş, seeking up to three years in jail within the framework of “counter-terrorism law” with regards to his remarks on Kocaman.

The indictment says Demirtaş addressed Kocaman as a target for a “terrorist organization.”

On his social media account, Demirtaş criticized Kocaman’s visit to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan right after his wedding on Sept. 19.