It is immensely disheartening that the world’s major democracies are being dumb on the arrest of former Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu in Turkey. Observers say democracy is in peril in Turkey today. Since Recep Tayyip Erdogan came to power in Turkey, the country has taken the path of authoritarianism in politics and governance. In order to concentrate all powers in his office, his regime has brought the courts in Turkey under his control. It has purged many academics, journalists, and dissidents who are critical of the government in the country.
Today, The Erdogan regime wants the next presidential elections to be held in 2028, so it must have space for him to manipulate it in the way he wants. The arrest of Imamoglu has been made on some trumped-up charges of corruption and terrorism against him. Recently, the rector of the University of Istanbul declared the former mayor’s college degree invalid, so he is not eligible for the next presidential race.
The Erdogan regime’s ire has been directed against Imamogly, mainly because Turkey’s main opposition, the Republican People’s Party(CHP), was expected to formally nominate him as its presidential candidate in its primary. The Republican Party is very popular in the country today. It is in power in most of the country’s largest cities, including Istanbul. Imamoglu defeated Erdoğan’s party candidate in Istanbul’s last three mayoral elections.
Winner of the 2006 Nobel Prize in Literature, Orhan Pamuk has rightly complained, “ For the past decade, Turkey hasn’t been a real democracy.” Regrettably, most of the leaders in the world’s leading democracies, including the United States, the so-called leader of the free world, have so far refrained from condemning Erdogan’s authoritarianism. Turkey continues to be a member of the NATO. It also continues to angle for EU membership. The world leaders rather seem to be green signaling what Erdogan has done so far. For instance, after Imamoglu’s arrest, US President Donald J Trump has said he happens “ to like him(Erdogan) and he likes me.” President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen has just said the arrest of the former mayor was “deeply concerning.”
The observers warn all secular states in the world must be on constant vigil against Erdogan’s designs against democracy. India must be specifically so. As part of the Erdogan regime’s designs against democracy, what it has been doing is very damaging to India’s core interest. The regime has been invoking “pro-Muslim sentiments” to broaden its social base in the Muslim world. It has been targeting India, for the country hosts the second-largest segment of the Muslim population in the world.
It may be recalled that in recent years, the Erdogan regime has invited several Indian Islamist leaders, including Zakir Naik, to spread Erdoğan’s influence across India. In 2016, Turkish cleric Serdar Demirel visited West Bengal to participate in a protest march organised by Muslims opposed to the Indian government’s bid to apply a Uniform Civil Code throughout the country. The Erdogan regime has also funded many Indian NGOs to reach out to Muslims.
Besides, Turkish strongman Erdogan has been on very excellent terms with Pakistan’s Chief of Army Staff Gen Syed Asim Munir. Reports are that in September 2023, Munir called on Erdogan and his Foreign and Defence Ministers. During his visit to Tukey, the Erdogan regime conferred upon him the Legion of Merit in recognition of his services towards promoting defence relations between Turkey and Pakistan. Besides, amid the current tensions between India and Pakistan, in the wake of the recent Pahalgam terror attack, Turkey has ramped up its military engagement with Islamabad. Turkish military cargo planes have delivered combat equipment to Pakistan. One can well imagine what the growing military nexus between Turkey and Pakistan might imply for India. It is no secret that Munir believes in the two-nation theory and is dead against secular India.
