CHP deputy forcibly removed from plane

“Without being shown any notices, I was removed from the plane with a prosecutor’s order and held in the airport,” Erdem told reporters at the airport.  

“It is not acceptable for someone with no ban on leaving the country to be hindered from foreign travel ... These moves and interfering attitudes, these acts of judiciary members, diminish the trust of all parts of society in the judiciary. I am being kept waiting here and my plane has taken off. My freedom to travel abroad has been hindered,” he added, claiming political motivation behind the incident.

“Bekir Bozdağ [Justice Minister] and our CHP Deputy Chair Bülent Tezcan have spoken [since the incident]. According to Bozdağ, it was a mistake. But we know what mistakes mean ... What is being done is political,” said Erdem, vowing to seek compensation through legal avenues.