Motahari: The Leader's Responsibility Without Oversight Is Neither Rational Nor Islamic

In the ongoing verbal clashes between appointees of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic and figures close to Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani regarding the oversight of the Leader by the Assembly of Experts, Ali Motahari, a representative from Tehran, stated that having a leader's responsibility without oversight is "neither rationally correct nor Islamic." According to the Iranian Labor News Agency, ILNA, Mr. Motahari emphasized on Wednesday, December 23, after registering for the 10th parliamentary elections, that it is "explicitly understood" from the Constitution that the Assembly of Experts has the duty to oversee the Supreme Leader and his subordinates. He stated that the Assembly of Experts is tasked with monitoring the conditions of leadership in the person of the Leader, and this is not possible without oversight. This parliament member added: "To say that someone has responsibility and there is no oversight over him is neither rationally correct nor Islamic." Mr. Motahari further stressed that "any non-infallible official placed in an uncriticizable position is dangerous both for himself and for Islam." In recent days, coinciding with the registration of candidates for the fifth term of the Assembly of Experts, the issue of this body's oversight over the Supreme Leader and his subordinate institutions has been a subject of intense verbal conflict between appointees of Ayatollah Khamenei and Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, the head of the Expediency Discernment Council, and figures close to him. Meanwhile, Majid Ansari, the parliamentary deputy of the President of Iran, emphasized on Wednesday after registering for the Assembly of Experts elections that "ensuring the conditions of leadership requires a kind of oversight." Hashemi Rafsanjani, on December 13, in an interview with ILNA, emphasized that the Assembly of Experts should not be "unaware" of the oversight of the institutions under the leader, stating: "We must at least discuss and follow up on the institutions under the leader that have any flaws with the leader to rectify those flaws." A day later, Sadeq Larijani, the head of Iran's judiciary, in response to these remarks, declared the oversight of the Assembly of Experts over the Supreme Leader as "incorrect" and "illegal," stating that "there is nothing in the Constitution regarding oversight over the Leader." On December 18, Ali Motahari published a letter addressed to the head of the judiciary, deeming his statements as "against the conduct" of the Prophet of Islam, the first Imam of Shia Islam, Ayatollah Khomeini, and Ayatollah Khamenei, and also as "reminiscent of the claims of the Catholic Church in the Middle Ages," "against the dictates of reason and political science," and "against the Constitution." Three days later, Sadeq Larijani dismissed Motahari's criticisms of his statements as "baseless" and referred to the oversight of the Assembly of Experts over the Supreme Leader as "delusions and incorrect expectations" and "made-up words" that have a "mysterious movement" behind them. The head of Iran's judiciary also implicitly criticized the entry of Hashemi Rafsanjani's "like-minded" individuals into the Assembly of Experts elections, calling the designation of Hassan Khomeini as "Allameh" by Mr. Hashemi Rafsanjani "mockery" of the seminaries and "laughing at the intelligence of the people." Meanwhile, Hashemi Rafsanjani expressed regret on Wednesday about the "domination of some hardliners and the extremist uses of official platforms." He added: "Unfortunately, some speak about the leadership in a way that they consider themselves solely as his deputy and representative." Mr. Hashemi Rafsanjani emphasized: "Some attribute their words to him in a way that, considering their irrational and illogical positions, not only distort the minds of the audience but also harm the exalted position of leadership and the guardianship of the jurist." Following the announcement of candidacies by Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani and figures close to him, including Hassan Khomeini and Mohammad Mousavi Bojnourdi for the Assembly of Experts elections, political conflicts regarding the presence of Mr. Hashemi Rafsanjani's like-minded individuals in this assembly have escalated. Since last year, some conservative clerics and close associates of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, have warned about the efforts of reformists and individuals close to Mr. Rafsanjani to participate in the Assembly of Experts elections. For instance, Ahmad Khatami, a member of the Assembly of Experts leadership board, stated in Bahman 93 that reformists would not even succeed in forming a powerful minority in the next term of this assembly, and this assembly would remain "velayat" as he put it.