İmamoğlu’s Lawyer: Forcing Him to Testify is Judicial Harassment

Pehlivan emphasized that all official documents submitted by İmamoğlu have been verified as authentic, including the Higher Education Council (YÖK) report cited as the basis for the investigation.

“The report confirms that İmamoğlu met the horizontal transfer criteria and that all documents he submitted to the university were accurate and valid. State records also support this. There is no longer any doubt regarding this issue, either within the public institutions or among the public,” he stated.

“No Criminal Element Exists”

Pehlivan further asserted that there is no evidence of forgery and that the YÖK report itself disproves any allegations of falsification.

“Despite this, forcing him to testify constitutes judicial harassment. Furthermore, even if a criminal element were present—which it is not—İmamoğlu would not be a party to the process, meaning the prosecutor’s office should not require his testimony,” he said.

“Not in Line with Legal Norms”

Referring to legal principles, Pehlivan added, “The right to legally acquired status and legal security must be respected. İmamoğlu and other students who transferred at the time are not required to justify their admissions beyond stating, ‘We applied and transferred.’”

He also criticized the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office’s recent letter to Istanbul University’s Rectorate, calling it inappropriate:

“Prosecutors can only issue directives to law enforcement. They should not pressure public institutions. While some may attempt to use the diploma issue for a smear campaign, our judiciary should avoid actions that could make it seem like part of such a campaign.”