ISTANBUL: Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu on Thursday urged the judiciary to take a stand against the Turkish government’s misuse of the courts as protesters rallied for a second day over his shock arrest in a graft and terror probe.

Imamoglu urged judges and prosecutors to “stand up and take action against those who are ruining the judiciary” in a message on X via his lawyers. “You cannot and must not remain silent,” he wrote after spending his first night in police custody after what the main opposition CHP denounced as a political “coup”.

The powerful and popular mayor — who is President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s main political rival — was held before dawn on Wednesday, just days before he was to be named as the CHP’s candidate for the 2028 race. The move brought thousands onto the streets, despite a four-day ban on protests, and by Thursday afternoon, the demonstrators were back holding placards saying “Together against lawlessness”.

More than 1,000 students from Galatasaray University joined a protest march through the waterfront Besiktas district, with scuffles as police tried to break it up, agency correspondent said.

Students were also marching from Istanbul University, which had on Tuesday revoked Imamoglu’s degree — a significant move as presidential candidates must have a third level qualification.

Published in Dawn, March 21st, 2025