An indictment accusing officials from the opposition-run Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality of wide-ranging corruption and bribery contains serious evidentiary gaps, according to an analysis of the court filing. Critics say the document relies on contradictory or uncorroborated statements, secret witness testimony and lacks clear proof of illicit financial transactions.

The historic case, which has led to the arrest of hundreds of officials from local governments run by Turkey’s main opposition party, the Republican People’s Party (CHP), is now under scrutiny over a lack of evidence, inconsistent handling of testimony and factual errors.

The investigation has seen a dozen-plus CHP mayors detained or arrested in related probes and has also led to the jailing of the party’s presidential candidate, Ekrem İmamoğlu — widely regarded as the most serious potential challenger to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan or his preferred successor in the 2028 election. From the outset, opposition figures have described the case as a politically motivated attempt to sideline a rival.

İmamoğlu is a senior figure in the CHP. He rose to national prominence after winning the Istanbul mayoralty in 2019 and was re-elected in 2024, before later being named the party’s presidential candidate for 2028 — positioning him as one of President Erdoğan’s leading political challengers.

The indictment — nearly 3,800 pages long — portrays an alleged “İmamoğlu-led organised crime group” and links the defendants to a range of serious accusations, including bribery, fraud against public institutions and the rigging of public tenders.........

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