İmamoğlu officially notified of diploma annulment

ISTANBUL

Istanbul University has officially served the city’s mayor, Ekrem İmamoğlu, with a notice annulling his university diploma — nearly 55 days after publicly announcing the decision, local media announced on May 13.

The delayed notification opens the door to challenge the ruling through legal avenues for İmamoğlu, who has been imprisoned since late March on the charge of corruption.

"Due to your irregular transfer, a decision has been rendered to revoke both the transfer and, by extension, your graduation and diploma, on the grounds of ‘absence' and 'clear error,’” the notification text told İmamoğlu, quoted by local media.

“As such, your undergraduate degree and diploma from the Faculty of Business Administration, English Program, have been invalidated,” it said.

The decision, which was first disclosed to the public on March 18, followed an ongoing criminal investigation launched by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office into allegations that İmamoğlu’s diploma is fraudulent.

The probe, based on reports of irregularities, focuses on his 1990 transfer from a private university in Turkish Cyprus to Istanbul University. The prosecutors claimed that transfers had a series of irregularities.

The university invalidated the diplomas of 28 individuals, including İmamoğlu. The ruling also affected an academic at Galatasaray University.

The university’s move effectively disqualifies İmamoğlu from running for president, as Turkish law requires candidates to hold a university degree.

İmamoğlu previously testified in connection with the diploma case.

"If I’m expected to defend myself, I struggle to understand the accusation itself. Still, I came here out of respect for the rule of law and the judiciary," İmamoğlu said during his testimony.

He also criticized the probe, arguing that it evaluated events from 35 years ago through the lens of today’s regulations.