Turkey: Court rejects effort to restore parliament seat

ANKARA

A top Turkish court on Wednesday rejected a bid to restore the parliamentary seat of an opposition Peoples' Democratic Party's (HDP) politician, saying the applicant had no standing to appeal.

In a unanimous summary judgment, the Constitutional Court turned back the effort to restore the parliamentary seat of Omer Faruk Gergerlioglu, whose seat was revoked on March 17 due to his conviction on terrorism-related charges.

An HDP lawmaker had filed the appeal, but he had no standing to do so, the court said.

On Feb. 19, Turkey's Supreme Court of Appeals also called the Court of Cassation, upheld Gergerlioglu’s sentence to two-and-a-half years in prison for spreading propaganda for the terrorist group PKK.

Also on March 17, Turkey's top prosecutor filed an indictment seeking dissolution of the HDP, calling it an undemocratic party that colludes with the terrorist group PKK and seeks to destroy the unity of the state.

In its more than 35-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the US, and the European Union – has been responsible for the deaths of at least 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants.