16.02.2026 13:23
Dismissed Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu appeared before the judge for the fourth hearing of the "diploma forgery" case against him. During the hearing held at the Silivri Marmara Penal Institutions Campus, İmamoğlu, who made his defense, stated, "Power hardens not for the self-assured, but for the fearful. Look, those who fear losing their seats have always resorted to forgery." While waiting for the prosecutor's opinion to be announced, the hearing was postponed to July 6.
After the investigation initiated regarding Ekrem İmamoğlu's canceled bachelor's degree by Istanbul University, the fourth hearing of the case opened on the charge of "systematic forgery of official documents," in which a prison sentence of up to 8 years and 9 months is requested for İmamoğlu, was held in the courtroom of Marmara Closed Prison in Silivri.
A LARGE CROWD FOLLOWED THE HEARING İmamoğlu's family, CHP members of parliament, district mayors, and many citizens, including İmamoğlu's university friends, also followed the hearing.
İMAMOĞLU WAS GREETED WITH LOUD APPLAUSE İmamoğlu arrived in the courtroom at 11:06, greeted by loud applause, while the presiding judge asked İmamoğlu, "We had postponed the previous session to wait for the outcome of the case at the Administrative Court. A decision has been made, but it has not been finalized. Is there anything you would like to add to your previous defense?"
İMAMOĞLU WANTED TO ADD TO HIS DEFENSE İmamoğlu stated that he wanted to add to his defense. İmamoğlu said: "Thank you, Your Honor. This week we are entering the month of Ramadan. Unfortunately, we are experiencing situations where we are exhausted by such unfortunate circumstances. However, Ramadan is a blessing, it awakens the conscience. Positions and wealth are subjected to a review of existence and non-existence, and one seeks refuge in the Creator. It is a month of opportunity for people to feel equal. But it is sad that the mentality that canceled the election in Ramadan in 2019 is the same mentality that canceled my diploma in Ramadan in 2025, and we will experience a process filled with lies and slander that coincides with Ramadan again.
"I HOPE THIS CASE EVOLVES INTO A HEALTHY PROCESS" My hope is not much, but I wish and want this case to evolve into a healthy process for our country and judicial system. We will meet once again in the 'ugly case' during Ramadan. Whatever is said to be impossible is being experienced by us during this period within the judicial system. I welcome Ramadan as a way for those who draw a path for themselves using faith to remind those who do shameful things. May God grant these people wisdom. I hope that this will bring discipline to the tongues of those who have reached higher positions. I wish for those who serve in the name of justice to feel how immoral it is to scheme, set traps, and target people's families. Faith lives in the mind and brain; there is no need to show it. However, I think that the mentality that needs to be shown by shoving it in people's faces is not our faith."
"UNFORTUNATELY, POLITICAL HISTORY IS FILLED WITH DISGRACEFUL CASES" Unfortunately, our esteemed nation’s political history is filled with disgraceful cases that attempt to imprison democracy, the will of the people, and hope. Today, we are here with such a scandalous indictment that I feel ashamed of the situation the esteemed Turkish judiciary has fallen into. I do not know what is planned, but the chain of cases that has formed has subjected our nation to unprecedented cases in history. We are going through a period where my right to a fair trial is being violated due to changing judges in a process formed by a trash indictment. The prosecutor who wrote this disgraceful indictment has achieved his goal and has been appointed as the deputy chief prosecutor of a district in Istanbul. The main reason for all of this is very clear: fear. I am here because I have won 4 elections against the mentality at the head of the government and because I will win the upcoming elections. I am here because the people see the purity in my heart, but my bond with the nation is not fake; it is clean and sincere. 70% of our nation is with me, and with the strength given by my citizens, I am here with my head held high, but what is happening is happening to our nation and our future. You have destroyed the trust in justice; more than 80% of people do not believe in justice. The monstrosity they call the 'presidential government system' operates at the whim of two people's lips. All institutions of our state have been dismantled. The future of our centuries-old state and state tradition is being condemned to a single person. The matter is very serious. This is definitely a matter of survival. I have been in Silivri for months due to the mentality that tries to destroy democracy.
"THE FUTURE OF THE CHIEF PROSECUTOR WAS ALREADY DETERMINED" This mentality of power pressed the button starting from the summer of 2024. If the chief prosecutor appointed to Istanbul 4 months after the local elections is successful, the position he will be brought to has already been determined. The person who has taken on the prosecution of the process is the one at the head of the government. The process has begun with lies and operations along with Esenyurt. Taking a respected mayor (Ahmet Özer) who is 65 years old is as much a collapse of conscience as what all our mayors are experiencing. All my friends who are in prison are innocent in the same way. All the practices within this fake process are political and have a clear target. The process before and after March 19 is trash. It is unlawful and invalid. The positions obtained by those who gain benefits during this process are not places obtained with merit. I express to those people that you will escape, but this period of chaos will end, and 86 million citizens will win. Time is not that short; it is near and at the threshold of the door. You will be held accountable for all of this in fair courts. What you have made us experience is fake and fraudulent.
"POWER HARDENS NOT TO THE CONFIDENT BUT TO THE AFRAID" The true position is in the hearts of the people. That has been my only concern. The government has forgotten this position; it has turned into the position of one person's heart. That position is also fake and deceptive. You will understand when the time comes. Power hardens not to the confident but to the afraid. I am on the side of truth, and I will never change my position on that side. There is no life like mine on earth that has been scrutinized so much. I come from a 12 square meter cell. Such isolation has never been experienced in history. Whatever we have done, we are within this isolation. Thank God, no germs can come among us, but let me say this, the germ is among you. I express this clearly.
POSTPONED TO JULY 6 After his defense, İmamoğlu's lawyers presented their requests while the prosecutor requested to wait for the finalization of the cancellation case at the Istanbul 5th Administrative Court. Although İmamoğlu's lawyers objected to this decision, the judge stated that he would wait for the finalization of the reasoned decision of the Administrative Court, which he saw as a suspensive element in the previous session.
The diploma case has been postponed to July 6, 2026, at 10:00 AM.
THE ADMINISTRATIVE COURT HAD REJECTED IMAMOĞLU'S REQUEST Before the last hearing of the case held on December 8, while the president of the court was changed by the HSK decision, the newly appointed court panel decided to postpone the case, waiting for the outcome of İmamoğlu's lawsuit filed against the cancellation of his diploma with a request for a stay of execution in the administrative court.
After the decision, İmamoğlu, speaking in court, reacted by saying, "You have no intention of adjudicating, Your Honor. What a pity."
The Istanbul 5th Administrative Court, which is handling the case in the administrative court and whose panel was also changed by the HSK decision, unanimously rejected İmamoğlu's lawsuit with the decision announced on January 23.