Demirtaş: I Have A Flat, Not A Palace

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The hearing of the lawsuit, which was filed against the imprisoned former Co-Chair of the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) Selahattin Demirtaş on the allegation that he had insulted the Prime Minister of the time Ahmet Davutoğlu, was held at the İstanbul 47th Penal Court of First Instance in the İstanbul Courthouse in Çağlayan today (November 14).

Being behind bars in the Edirne Type F Closed Prison, Demirtaş attended the hearing via Audio and Visual Information System (SEGBİS).

The Presiding Judge gave a verdict of non-jurisdiction for the court on the ground that "the offense in question was committed via press." The file of the court case will be sent to the İstanbul 2nd Penal Court of First Instance, which has jurisdiction in press offences.

The attorneys of Demirtaş stated that the verdict of non-jurisdiction is against the due process of law and added that they will object to the verdict.

Demirtaş: I have a flat, not a palace

During the identification process at the hearing, Demirtaş was asked to state his job and how he has been making a living. Demirtaş answered, "I am not an MP. I can make a living with the support of my wife."

In response to the question of the judge, "Do you have any personal assets?", Demirtaş said, "Yes, I have a house."

To the judge, who further asked, "What type of house? Is it a flat?", Demirtaş responded, "Yes, a flat. Not a palace."

Lawsuit was filed due to his speech in 2015

According to the indictment filed by the İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, Selahattin Demirtaş has been facing prison sentence for "openly insulting" the Prime Minister of the time Ahmet Davutoğlu in a speech that he made on September 8, 2015. In his speech, Demirtaş said,

"I want to remind Dear Davutoğlu of something. This time, you have gone down in history as a child murdering prime minister. You have gone down in history as a prime minister, who has not permitted children to be put to rest.

"You have gone down in history as a prime minister who has tortured the deceased bodies. The whole society of Turkey knows the reason why you did it. You have driven the soldiers, the youngsters to the fields of death so that you can come to power. Do people have to die for your seat?" (TP/SD)