CHP's Kılıçdaroğlu says Erdoğan's new appointment to top court 'a disgrace'

Photo: AA

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Main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) Chair Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu has criticized the appointment of a judge to the Constitutional Court.

"A 20-day guy came to the Constitutional Court whereas there are people who spent years at the Court of Cassation," he told his party's parliamentary group yesterday (January 26).

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İrfan Fidan, the former chief public prosecutor of İstanbul, was appointed by the Council of Judges and Prosecutors (HSK) to the Court of Cassation, the country's highest court of appeals, in late November.

A few days later, he announced his candidacy for the Constitutional Court.

Despite serving only a few weeks at the Court of Cassation, he received the highest number of votes from the court members and was appointed to the top court by President and Justice and Development Party (AKP) Chair Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Saturday (January 23).

"The election was done upon instruction and İrfan Fidan got 107 votes ... How did 107 people get to know him in 20 days? They received instruction," said Kılıçdaroğlu. "Those 107 people are a disgrace for the Court of Cassation."

As the İstanbul chief prosecutor, Fidan prosecuted several important political cases, including the case of the 2013 Gezi Park protests, the case of the "December 17-25 corruption plot against the government," and the "National Intelligence Organization (MİT) trucks case." (DŞ/VK)