Turkish prime minister dismisses reports that he has plans to form a new party if Constitutional Court closes his ruling AK party.
Turkish media on Monday published reports that Recep Tayyip Erdogan had said that he would set up a new party if the Justice and Development party were shut down.
âThe expressions used, allegedly said by the prime minister, hold no truth whatsoever,â the prime ministers office said in a statement Tuesday.
Turkeys chief prosecutor asked the Constitutional Court last month to shut down the Justice and Development party on the charges that its members were engaged in anti-secular activities.
The AK party, which won a sweeping re-election last July, rejects the allegations and says the case is politically motivated.
Last week the AK party submitted its preliminary defense in the case, under which the filing prosecutor also seeks to ban 71 party officials, including Erdogan and President Abdullah Gul, from politics for five years.
The government is at odds with the secular establishment, which includes the powerful military and judiciary, over the role of Islam.
The case was brought up after Parliament passed a constitutional amendment to lift a ban on university students wearing the Muslim headscarf, viewed by secularists as a symbol of political Islam.
JS/PA
Source: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=54594§ionid=351020204
Photo : http://muhtarsuhaili.files.wordpress.com/2007/07/recep-tayyip-erdogan.jpg