TurkStat files complaint against independent Inflation Research Group

Minister Elvan says ENAG's purpose is to "discredit TurkStat." (Photo: AA/File)

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The Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) filed a criminal complaint against the Independent Inflation Research Group (ENAG), Minister of Treasury and Finance Lütfi Elvan said Thursday (May 6).

Led by economists, ENAG releases monthly inflation figures based on its own model and usually finds significantly higher rates than the TurkStat.

The official monthly inflation rate for April was 1.68 percent whereas the ENAG's inflation rate stood at 2.62 percent.

The accuracy of the official figures has been questioned by economists and opposition parties over the past few years.

Elvan, who replaced President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's son-in-law as the finance minister in November, denied the claims of inaccuracy.

"It's absolutely out of the question that the TurkStat is playing with the numbers and that the inflation rate is 30-40 percent," he said during a program on pro-government CNN Türk channel.

"For the first time in history, the TurkStat filed a criminal complaint regarding this group. The purpose of this group is to discredit the TurkStat," he said, referring to the ENAG.

Daily Cumhuriyet reported that the complaint was filed in February. It alleged that the ENAG violated article 6 of the Statistics Law and demanded a judicial fine of 20 lira per day against the group.

The provision it cited obligates organizations that carry out research activities containing statistical results to make public scope, sampling method and sample size of the research, data collection method and the period of time the research was carried out.

Submitting its statement of defense to the İstanbul Anadolu Chief Public Prosecutor's Office on April 5, the ENAG said it had met all the requirements of the law. (HA/VK)