Ekrem Imamoglu demands the right to speak during the hearing, causes a disturbance and leads the magistrate to interrupt the session
Ekrem Imamoglu, mayor of Istanbul, had his trial started this Monday (9 March 2026) in Türkiye. Accused of corruption and bribery in municipal management – crimes that can result in a sentence of more than 2,000 years in prison – the defendant was involved in a verbal confrontation with the judge, provoking protests from the public in the courtroom.
The uproar began when Imamoglu demanded the right to speak during the hearing. The action generated a confrontation with the magistrate and provoked a reaction from those present in the room, who expressed support for the mayor of Istanbul. Given the situation, the judge interrupted the proceedings. There is no information on when the session will resume.
History
Imamoglu, 55, was arrested in March 2025 and has been detained for almost a year in the Silivri prison complex, west of Istanbul, where the trial is taking place. The arrest caused protests in several regions of the country. The mayor is considered the main political rival of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has been in power since 2003.
The CHP (Republican People’s Party), Imamoglu’s party, classifies the accusation as political persecution.
The government denies any influence over the Judiciary. The new Minister of Justice, Akin Gurlek, stated that he acted as an unbiased prosecutor during the investigations involving Imamoglu.
There are suspicions that Erdogan seeks to eliminate the possibility of his main opponent running in Türkiye’s next presidential elections. The election is scheduled to take place until May 2028. The continuation of the judicial process will determine whether Imamoglu will be able to participate in the electoral dispute, in a scenario that reinforces tension between the government and the opposition in the country.
