Istanbul Mayor İmamoğlu faces another investigation, this time over his bachelor’s degree

A Turkish prosecutor’s office has initiated another investigation against the opposition’s Istanbul Mayor İmamoğlu based on the claims that his university diploma was “forged.”

Duvar English

The Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office has initiated another investigation into Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, online news outlet Habertürk reported on Feb. 22.

The new investigation is based on the claims that İmamoğlu’s university diploma was “forged.” The popular mayor is accused of “'forgery of official documents” this time.

The investigation was initiated after the Council of Higher Education (YÖK) sent a report to the prosecutor's office upon claims that İmamoğlu’s university diploma was “fake.” 

İmamoğlu is expected to give his testimony on Feb. 26 in line with the investigation. 

If the investigation is accepted, this will be the sixth lawsuit İmamoğlu faces. 

İmamoğlu is facing a new wave of judicial investigations, which might end up in a political ban, as he is regarded as one of the biggest rivals of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

He is expected to be declared as the presidential candidate of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) in the next month following the party primary. 

The investigation “shows how afraid they are of İmamoğlu,” CHP leader Özgür Özel said on the same day.