14.10.2026 18:22
On the 98th day of the İBB trial, Ekrem İmamoğlu, making his first defense after 19 months, argued that all the files against him were actually a single file and said, "Its name is also clear: the de-candidatization file." Rejecting the accusations, İmamoğlu criticized the annulment of his diploma, the recall of his book, the appointment of a trustee to Halk TV, and the urban consensus investigation. The hearing ended at 17:30; İmamoğlu will continue his defense tomorrow.
İmamoğlu, who completed the first part of his defense in the İBB trial held in Silivri, argued that the case was political. In his defense, İmamoğlu touched on many issues, from judicial processes to press freedom, from the fund crisis to the September 12 regime.
FIRST DEFENSE AFTER 19 MONTHS
At the 98th day hearing of the trial with 436 defendants, 53 of whom are detained, held by the Istanbul 33rd Heavy Penal Court at the Marmara Prison Campus in Silivri, İBB Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, who has been detained since March 19, 2025 and removed from office, began his defense at 12:00. While the courtroom was filled with spectators and journalists, YENİ Party Chairman Özgür Özel also followed the hearing.
Starting his remarks by thanking his detained friends, their families, and the lawyers, İmamoğlu argued that the presumption of innocence had been violated and used the phrases “violation of the right not to be tarnished, the destruction of the presumption of innocence.”
“THEY LOOKED IN THE MIRROR AND WROTE WHAT THEY SAW IN THE INDICTMENT IN MY NAME”
Stating that he objected to the indictment from its first page, İmamoğlu claimed that the accusations were based on words a confessor heard from someone else. İmamoğlu said, “They looked in the mirror and wrote what they saw in the indictment in my name.”
Stating that accounts belonging to him and his family were examined, İmamoğlu rejected the allegations and said, “They could not find a single penny.” İmamoğlu expressed the view, “This case can only be resolved with a legal, fair decision if its political nature is seen and understood.”
“ITS NAME IS CLEAR: THE DE-CANDIDATIZATION FILE”
Noting that there are 15 criminal cases against him, İmamoğlu argued that these cases served a single purpose. İmamoğlu said, “All these files are actually a single file. Its name is also clear: the de-candidatization file. De-candidatization, de-leaderization, de-partization.”
Saying, “Because rendering him rival-less is the goal of today’s political will and power,” İmamoğlu also touched on the annulment of the 2019 Istanbul elections and used the phrases, “You annul the election, your margin rises from 13 thousand votes to 806 thousand.”
“MY DIPLOMA WAS REVOKED DAYS BEFORE THE PRIMARY”
Regarding the annulment of his diploma, İmamoğlu said, “Days before the primary, my 32-year-old university diploma was revoked. In other words, this revocation was not an education record; it was a candidacy decision.”
“THEY WERE AFRAID OF MY BOOK”
Detailing for the first time the process of the confiscation of the book he wrote in prison, İmamoğlu said that he gave the book to a publishing house, that the banderols were obtained and sent to the printing house, and that with a search warrant issued on August 25, police entered the printing house. Arguing that the investigation targeted the book more than an unbanderolled printing, İmamoğlu said, “In fact, the evidence being sought was my book, and it was being sought to be destroyed. They were afraid of my book.” İmamoğlu also used the phrases, “Whereas a bomb is violence, a book is thought.”
REACTION TO THE TRUSTEE APPOINTED TO HALK TV
Also reacting to the operation against Halk TV and the appointment of a trustee on the day his defense was given, İmamoğlu said, “And the latest media plunder, the Halk TV operation. Operation addiction has begun.” Arguing that the audience should decide the future of a channel, İmamoğlu said, “If the people like it, they watch; if they don’t, they don’t watch.” Claiming that journalists were detained for reporting news, İmamoğlu used the phrase, “The Republic of Turkey has turned into a republic of operations.”
CLAIMS ABOUT THE FUND CRISIS
Also touching on fund investigations in his defense, İmamoğlu said that 131 funds were liquidated in September and that the money of more than 455 thousand citizens was in these funds. Claiming that the stock market lost more than 16 percent in one month, İmamoğlu alleged, “The cost of the fund plunder to this country for now, over 15-20 days, has exceeded 107 billion dollars.”
“THIS ORDER IS LEFT OVER FROM SEPTEMBER 12”
Continuing his defense at 15:30 after the recess, İmamoğlu criticized the distinction between the state and the government, accountability, and the order remaining from the September 12 period. İmamoğlu said, “The true measure of popular sovereignty is not how the government is elected.”
“URBAN CONSENSUS IS NOT SOMETHING TO BE DECLARED ILLEGAL”
Arguing that the urban consensus file was fabricated to discredit him and pave the way for the appointment of a trustee to the İBB, İmamoğlu spoke as follows:
“Council members and deputy mayors elected through consensus were arrested. They served months in prison, months. All except two were acquitted. Why the two were punished, we do not know that either. Kurds having a say in municipal councils in the West began to be described almost as a criminal process in itself. The urban consensus was not something to be declared illegal; it was a very important democratic experience that needed to be embraced.”
“TWO PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES ARE IN PRISON”
Also touching on Selahattin Demirtaş’s detention, İmamoğlu said, “I see that in this country in the last ten years, two presidential candidates are in prison. Municipalities are run by trustees. Not a single step back is taken. One in Edirne, one in Silivri.” İmamoğlu said, “In this country, peace and tranquility will be established in an environment where the mentality that imprisons freedom and liberty, and especially its rivals, comes to an end.”
İmamoğlu also criticized the court ruling issued on May 21 regarding the main opposition party’s congress, using the phrases, “The will of delegates, members, and voters was sought to be ignored.”
“I WILL WORK LIKE A SOLDIER”
Saying, “Hope never faded, and it will not fade,” İmamoğlu said he would work “like a soldier” for the country to become a just country.
THE HEARING WILL CONTINUE TOMORROW
At the hearing, which ended at 17:30, İmamoğlu stated that he had completed a part of his defense. The presiding judge asked for the defense to continue tomorrow. While Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday were set aside for the defenses, the court panel is expected to announce its interlocutory decision on Saturday after the defenses of İmamoğlu and his lawyers.
As İmamoğlu was being removed from the courtroom, he told members of the press, “This is a great usurpation.”