A court in Ankara has postponed until September a corruption case that could rock the leadership of Turkey's main opposition party, the Republican People's Party (CHP).

The case could invalidate the results of the PRP's primary leadership election at its congress in November 2023 on the grounds of alleged fraud, thereby overturning the election of leader Yozgur Yozel.

Today's hearing was brief, with the judge postponing proceedings until September 8 on the grounds of a question of jurisdiction.

The Ankara prosecutor's office launched an investigation in February into allegations of vote buying at the congress, in which Özgür defeated longtime leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu.

The CHP rejects the allegations.

The outcome could lead to three years in prison and a political ban on corruption for several CHP figures, including jailed Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, according to media reports cited by AFP.

Critics say the case is a politically motivated attempt to undermine the party, whose popularity has grown since it led a wave of street protests in March following the removal of the popular opposition mayor of Istanbul.

Imamoglu, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's biggest political opponent, was arrested as part of a “corruption” investigation that the SBI condemned as a “coup” and said its sole purpose was to prevent him from running for president in 2028.

“There is no conspiracy against our party that is not related to the coup of March 19,” Yozel wrote on X.

“It is clear that today's hearing was not focused on the results, but was a politically motivated process aimed at discrediting our party, stopping our march to power and breaking our determination to fight,” he added.

The party called for a mass demonstration tomorrow, July 1, at 8:30 p.m. (Bulgarian time) in front of the Istanbul City Hall to mark 100 days since Imamoglu's removal.

“We will never stray from our goal or give up our path! Tomorrow, on the 100th dark day since the coup, we will be in Sarachane, the heart of the resistance!” said Yozel, using a local term for the city hall, which in March attracted huge crowds of protesters.

If the election results are overturned, the party's leadership will almost certainly return to 76-year-old Kilicdaroglu, who was ousted after losing the 2023 presidential election to Recep Tayyip Erdogan, leaving the party in crisis.

Kilicdaroglu has already stated that he is ready to take over the party's leadership again if the court overturns the primary election results, which has sparked a storm of reactions within the CHP. | BGNES