Mahmoud Sadeghi: They Lay in Wait to Arrest Me Like Thieves and Kidnappers

Mahmoud Sadeghi, the representative of Tehran, criticized the issuance of an arrest warrant against him by a so-called "foolish" investigator and the agents lying in wait near his home to arrest him, comparing their methods to those of "thieves and kidnappers" during a public session of the parliament on Sunday, December 14. In response, Ali Larijani, the Speaker of the Parliament, denied the transfer of judicial funds to a "personal" account belonging to the head of the judiciary and told Sadeghi that "your remarks are not in line with the relations between the branches of government." Sadeghi reiterated in his remarks that the arrest warrant against him was contrary to the "explicit text of the Constitution" and that the attempt to arrest him was solely due to his warning to the Minister of Economy regarding the personal bank accounts of the head of the judiciary. He expressed his discontent with Larijani, questioning why he did not defend the "dignity" of the parliament and protest against the "violation" of a parliament member. He labeled the judiciary's action against him as "structural disruption" and added: "My warning does not contradict peace in society. It is those who attempt to arrest a representative at night with the order of a foolish investigator who disturb the peace." Larijani responded that Sadeghi's comments were not appropriate for the relations between the branches. He also pointed out that Sadeghi's claims regarding the judiciary's funds being deposited into personal accounts were "an accusation." Larijani previously informed Sadeghi and two other representatives that reports about the judiciary's funds being deposited into a "personal" account were incorrect, stating that these funds were under the name of the judiciary, not an individual. He admonished Sadeghi for not correcting his statements, asserting that accusing individuals is not freedom of expression and that he has harmed the reputation of a Muslim and an organization. Larijani further stated that calling the investigator "foolish" was not appropriate for the parliament and emphasized that the atmosphere of the parliament and the judiciary should not be undermined. He noted that if a representative is summoned to the prosecutor's office due to statements made in the course of their duties, this matter should be reviewed by the Supervisory Board on Representatives' Conduct. He also mentioned that he had told Mohammad Ali Vakili, a member of the parliament's board, that if the prosecutor's office insists, Sadeghi should visit the prosecutor's office, as he had previously requested Ali Motahari to do so in a similar case. Larijani acknowledged that the nighttime action by the prosecutor's office to arrest Sadeghi was "not correct" and that he had followed up on the matter, leading to the agents returning. He also referred to the issue of the renewal of U.S. sanctions and the regional situation, stating that "we should not exacerbate tense issues in the country." Mahmoud Sadeghi, a member of the Hope faction in parliament, had reported on Sunday, December 7, that agents had attempted to arrest him when he returned home, which was against the law governing the oversight of parliament members, but he had managed to resist and reach his home. In a letter to Larijani, Sadeghi emphasized that the "main source" of the arrest warrant was his warning regarding the personal accounts of the head of the judiciary and stated that he expected the Speaker to take "greater care" to prevent "open aggression against the parliament's dignity." He mentioned that on Tuesday, December 9, he had visited the prosecutor's office with Mohammad Reza Tabesh, the deputy head of the Hope faction, aiming to "maintain peace and reduce tension in society," during which the investigator took the opportunity to inform him of the charges against him. According to Sadeghi, discussions with Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi, the Tehran prosecutor, who was also present with Tabesh, made it clear that the "main source" of the arrest warrant was his warning to the Minister of Economy about the judiciary's funds being deposited into the head of the judiciary's "personal" accounts. This Tehran representative also mentioned that his warnings regarding the non-compliance with criminal procedure in the case of Yashar Soltani, complaints from the representative of Kashan, and complaints from several students who were granted scholarships during the previous government were three other complaints against him. He stated that Jafari Dolatabadi praised his presence in the prosecutor's office and promised that an official announcement from the judiciary would state that Sadeghi's presence was "voluntary," but this promise was not fulfilled. The Tehran prosecutor's office reported on Tuesday, December 9, that Mahmoud Sadeghi was released on bail after appearing in the Culture and Media Prosecutor's Office and "undergoing investigations regarding the charges raised by the case investigator." Hours after this report, the deputy head of the Hope faction announced that Sadeghi's presence in the prosecutor's office was "voluntary" and that fairness had not been observed in the report published by the prosecutor's office. In his letter to the Speaker, Sadeghi reiterated that the prosecutor's office's attempt to arrest him was "contrary to" Articles 84 and 86 of the Constitution, Article 77 of the Internal Regulations of the Parliament, and the Law on the Supervision of Representatives' Conduct. According to Article 84 of the Constitution, "Every representative is responsible before the entire nation and has the right to express opinions on all domestic and foreign issues of the country." The Law on the Supervision of Representatives states that the determination of "the instances of Article 86 of the Constitution and Article 75 of the Internal Regulations of the Parliament" is the responsibility of the Supervisory Board on Representatives' Conduct. According to Article 86 of the Constitution, representatives cannot be prosecuted or detained for "the opinions they have expressed in the parliament or the votes they have cast in the performance of their representative duties," yet the judiciary has never recognized this principle in practice. However, the Tehran prosecutor stated on Tuesday, December 8, that the Guardian Council in 2001 had interpreted this principle, stating that "immunity does not have an Islamic root and all people are equal before divine rights and laws." Sadeghi wrote to Larijani that he expected him, due to his oath of office and the parliament's regulations, to take "greater care to prevent this open aggression against the dignity of the Islamic Consultative Assembly and to condemn this action after it occurred." In the conclusion of his letter, Sadeghi expressed his expectation that the Speaker and members of the parliament's board would "take necessary measures to preserve the dignity and authority of the parliament and its independence by explicitly condemning this action." Sadeghi had previously described his summons to the prosecutor's office and the attempt to arrest him without the Supervisory Board's review of the summons as "illegal." The Supervisory Board on Representatives' Conduct is formed in each parliamentary term, and its members include one of the vice-presidents of the parliament, one chosen by the 90th Article Commission, one chosen by the Legal and Judicial Commission, and four elected representatives through voting.