Turkish Court Offers Respite to Embattled Opposition Amid Ongoing Crackdown

A Turkish court over the weekend dismissed a case that attempted to remove the head of the country’s main opposition, the Republican People’s Party (CHP), a ruling that eased market tensions but was a setback for President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in his attempt to suppress the opposition, the Associated Press reported.

The case centered on a lawsuit that sought to annul the 2023 internal election of the CHP, where party chief Özgür Özel replaced longtime leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu.

The lawsuit challenged the legitimacy of the CHP’s 38th congress, claiming alleged vote-buying and procedural violations.

On Friday, a court in the capital Ankara ruled there was no legal basis for removing Özel or invalidating the party congress. Özel welcomed the verdict and criticized the legal proceedings as part of a government effort to “create internal turmoil and divide” the party.

Following the ruling, Turkey’s benchmark Borsa Istanbul index rose more than 3 percent, as investors interpreted the decision as a brief reprieve from political instability.

Analysts, however, cautioned that the judgment offered only temporary relief amid what they described as a broader “legal offensive” targeting the CHP and its leadership, according to the Financial Times.

The CHP – founded by Turkey’s first president, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk – has been grappling with a series of prosecutions and arrests following its strong performance in last year’s local elections.

Among them is Istanbul mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu – widely viewed as Erdoğan’s most important rival – who has been in pretrial detention since March on corruption charges that he denies and says are politically motivated.

His arrest inspired mass protests across the country and warnings of democratic backsliding under Erdoğan – who has been in power for more than 20 years.

Erdoğan’s administration insists the judiciary operates independently and that the cases are based solely on corruption allegations but critics say the prosecutions reflect an effort to neutralize political opponents ahead of the next presidential election scheduled for 2028.