20.06.2026 09:01
Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, who returned to the CHP chairmanship by a decision of absolute nullity, said he does not regret voting 'yes' to the constitutional amendment that resulted in the arrest of Selahattin Demirtaş and HDP deputies. With the 2016 constitutional amendment, 16 HDP deputies were arrested, and Demirtaş and Figen Yüksekdağ's detention reached 10 years. Sakık from the DEM Party responded harshly to Kılıçdaroğlu's statements.
Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, who returned to the CHP Chairmanship by court decision, answered journalists' questions on television for the first time after the absolute nullity decision.
During the program, Kılıçdaroğlu was asked about the parliamentary reports prepared regarding CHP deputies. When asked about their stance on lifting immunities if the investigation regarding the deputies in the congress criminal case comes to Parliament, Kılıçdaroğlu replied, 'Personally, if there were such a claim against me, I would want my immunity to be lifted and to go and clear my name. At the same time, lifting immunities is one of the fundamental principles of our party.'
'I AM NOT REGRETFUL'
In response to the question of whether he regrets supporting the constitutional amendment under which Demirtaş was arrested, Kılıçdaroğlu said:
'No. Look, your own party and congress have established a basic provision regarding the lifting of immunities. If you say, 'I don't listen to the congress's word and I won't do this,' that's not right. Was Selahattin Bey arrested? Yes. Is he a political prisoner? Yes. Is it wrong? Yes. Did I visit him? I visited him many times and said so everywhere. I opposed the arrest of a person due to political opinions. I currently have no immunity either. I know an injustice has been done. I also know an injustice has been done to the Hatay deputy (Can Atalay). There are decisions from the Constitutional Court and the European Court of Human Rights.'
SIRRI SAKIK: YOU ARE A CHEAT TOO SHAMELESS TO REGRET
DEM Party member Sırrı Sakık reacted to Kılıçdaroğlu's words. In his post, Sakık said, 'I knew who and what you were, and I was lynched for exposing it back then. I was also subjected to your slander. You are a cheat too shameless to regret. We are the ones who regret supporting you. We went and voted for someone like you who has no right side. And the biggest mistake of my political life is going and asking for votes from you!'
WHAT HAD HAPPENED?
After the November 1, 2015 elections, 'terror' incidents once again became one of Turkey's main agenda items, and a large number of parliamentary reports regarding HDP deputies had accumulated in Parliament. The AK Party administration, with the open support of the MHP, was demanding that the immunity files be processed quickly.
In April 2016, the AK Party submitted a constitutional amendment proposal to Parliament to lift immunities. In this critical equation, where 367 votes were needed to make the amendment without a referendum (the AK Party had 317 deputies, the MHP had 40), CHP leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu's statement on April 16, 2016, 'It is unconstitutional, but we will say yes,' changed the course of the process.
THE CONSTITUTION WAS TEMPORARILY SUSPENDED
With the support of the CHP, the constitutional amendment was approved with 376 votes on May 20, 2016. With the decision:
A provisional Article 20 was added to the Constitution.
Articles 83, 84, and 85 of the Constitution were temporarily suspended.
Immunities were collectively lifted for all parliamentary reports present in Parliament at that time.
16 DEPUTIES ARRESTED, THE PROCESS LASTED 10 YEARS
On November 4, 2016, 9 deputies, including HDP Co-Chairs Selahattin Demirtaş and Figen Yüksekdağ, were detained. During this process, a total of 16 HDP deputies were arrested, while the detention periods of Demirtaş and Yüksekdağ reached 10 years.