Journalist detained in probe into CHP trustee claims
ANKARA
Journalist Rasim Ozan Kütahyalı has been detained over his social media posts after the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office launched an investigation into his claims suggesting that a state-appointed trustee could be appointed to lead the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP)
Police detained Kütahyalı in the northern province of Bolu, and is now set to testify to Ankara prosecutors via an online legal system, according to local media.
The probe comes amid ongoing legal challenges to the CHP’s 2023 leadership convention, where current chairman Özgür Özel defeated longtime party leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu.
Several party delegates, including former Hatay Mayor Lütfü Savaş, filed separate lawsuits alleging electoral irregularities, including vote-buying by Özel’s camp.
The cases were later merged into a single file, with the first hearing held in Ankara on April 17. The court postponed the case to May 26 without issuing a ruling. This week, prosecutors took the testimonies of some 86 people, including Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoğlu, who is under arrest in another probe over corruption claims.
In the days leading up to the hearing, widespread rumors circulated that the convention could be annulled due to allegations and the party placed under state control through a trustee appointment.
Kütahyalı amplified the claims on X, citing increased police presence in the capital over possible protests to the decision.
Prosecutors accused him of “publicly disseminating misleading information” and have requested his detention through an official request to their Istanbul counterparts.
In an apparent move to preempt a possible trustee intervention, the CHP held another congress on April 6, during which Özel was re-elected as party chairman.
Separately, a widening corruption probe into alleged bid-rigging involving several CHP-run district municipalities in Istanbul has led to fresh detentions.
Twelve people were detained including the deputy mayor from Beşiktaş — considered a CHP stronghold. The district’s deputy mayor was also detained.
In January, Beşiktaş Mayor Rıza Akpolat was arrested in connection with the same investigation. The mayor and deputy mayor of Beykoz Municipality are also currently in pre-trial detention.
