Turkish Opposition Mayor Arrested in Expanding Corruption Sweep By The Media Line Staff Turkish police detained Bayrampaşa district mayor Hasan Mutlu on Saturday, along with 47 municipal officials, in a widening corruption probe that has increasingly targeted the country’s main opposition party. According to state media, raids were carried out across 72 locations in Istanbul […]
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The Media Line: Turkish Opposition Mayor Arrested in Expanding Corruption Sweep
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Turkish Opposition Mayor Arrested in Expanding Corruption Sweep
By The Media Line Staff
Turkish police detained Bayrampaşa district mayor Hasan Mutlu on Saturday, along with 47 municipal officials, in a widening corruption probe that has increasingly targeted the country’s main opposition party.
According to state media, raids were carried out across 72 locations in Istanbul as part of an investigation into alleged bribery, fraud, embezzlement, and bid rigging within the municipality. Prosecutors ordered the detentions after seizing documents said to be linked to the charges.
Mutlu, a member of the Republican People’s Party (CHP), rejected the accusations. In a message posted on X, he insisted the investigation was politically motivated. “I have served only Bayrampaşa and its citizens,” he wrote. “What has happened consists of political operations and baseless slanders.”
The detentions mark the latest in a series of arrests aimed at CHP mayors and local officials. Over the past several months, more than a dozen CHP mayors, as well as hundreds of municipal workers, have been accused of corruption and taken into custody. Among them is Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, who is widely viewed as President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s leading rival.
İmamoğlu was arrested in March, sparking nationwide demonstrations. He currently faces charges of falsifying his university degree, with prosecutors seeking a prison sentence of up to eight years and nine months along with a political ban. His next court hearing is scheduled for October.
The CHP argues that the charges are part of a government campaign to cripple the opposition leadership and secure Erdoğan another five years in power. The government denies such claims, maintaining that the judiciary acts independently.
Meanwhile, political uncertainty is deepening for the CHP. On Monday, a court is expected to decide whether to annul the party’s 2023 Congress, claiming irregularities in the election of delegates. An annulment could unsettle the leadership structure and leave the opposition fragmented at a critical time.
The arrests have further fueled tensions in Turkey’s already polarized political climate, with opposition supporters framing the crackdown as an effort to eliminate Erdoğan’s most significant challengers through the courts rather than the ballot box.