Turkish Opposition Leader Arrested for Alleged Corruption Amid Govt Crackdown

Umit Erkol, the provincial leader of the Ankara branch of the Republican People’s Party, CHP, was arrested on Sunday over alleged corruption ties involving Izmir Municipality and a construction project.

“Everyone knows that if Umit Erkol had not been the CHP Ankara provincial chair, he would not have been arrested. The decision is not independent of the attacks directed at our party,” said CHP leader Ozgur Ozel on Sunday in a denial of all accusations that Erkol faces.

The CHP, Turkey’s main opposition party, called for a protest after the arrest and several thousand people gathered in front of the CHP’s Ankara headquarters.

“Everyone knows that there is no justice in this country. The judiciary has become a dependent arm of the ruling party,” CHP Deputy President Ensar Aytekin told the crowd in Ankara on Sunday night.

Protestors later attempted to walk to the Justice Ministry but police dispersed the crowd using tear gas. No detentions were reported.

Over the last year, dozens of CHP mayors and hundreds of party members have been arrested on corruption and terrorism charges. This includes Istanbul Mayor and presidential candidate Ekrem Imamoglu, who was arrested on March 19, 2025. The prosecutor’s office is demanding a 2,352-year prison sentence for Imamoglu. The CHP denies all accusations.

Most recently, the CHP Mayor of Bursa, Mustafa Bozbey, was arrested on April 4 along with 30 others for allegedly “forming a crime group”.

Following this a major power shift occurred. The mayoralty of Bursa, Turkey’s fourth largest city, shifted to control by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s ruling Justice and Development Party, AKP, after the AKP-controlled city council elected a new acting mayor.

Opposition politicians, rights groups and international organisations have said that Erdogan’s government is using the judiciary to crush political rivals in what they describe as an unprecedented crackdown.…Read more by Hamdi Firat Buyuk