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Former Republican People’s Party (CHP) lawmaker and journalist Baris Yarkadas, who was referred to the party’s disciplinary board with a pending expulsion request, claimed that CHP Istanbul Provincial Chair Ozgur Ozel and his leadership have begun preparations to form a new party. The move, he said, comes amid fears of a court ruling in the CHP Congress case similar to recent decisions affecting the Istanbul branch.
Yarkadas told TGRT Haber that the leadership has been considering a five-story building in Ankara’s Balgat district for the new party’s headquarters.
The claims emerge as investigations and operations targeting CHP-run municipalities, including the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality, continue. On Sept. 2, a court removed Istanbul Provincial Chair Ozgur Celik and the provincial administration from office, appointing Gursel Tekin as interim chair. Tekin has since been expelled from the CHP.
Following the decision, political circles debated whether the Istanbul ruling would influence the court case at the 38th CHP Ordinary Congress in Ankara. Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc said the Istanbul Congress decision could significantly affect the Congress case. Party members say the main goal is to cancel the 38th Congress and halt Ozel’s path toward political leadership.
Yarkadas was referred to the party’s disciplinary board after making statements following the Istanbul branch ruling. TGRT Haber Ankara correspondent Fatih Atik also commented on social media that the CHP leadership appears ready to continue with a new party.
Atik wrote that the top CHP leadership has openly discussed moving forward with a new party, noting that the infrastructure for such a move may already be in place. “We may soon witness a split within the CHP,” he said.
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