Reactions of Some Principlists in Parliament to the Conviction of Rahimi

Three principlist representatives in the Iranian parliament denied the principlist affiliation of Mohammad Reza Rahimi, the former first vice president, claiming that his conviction was due to a complaint from principlists. These representatives also called for a decisive and swift ruling in the case of Mehdi Hashemi, the son of Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani. Alireza Zakani, a representative from Tehran, stated in an interview with Mehr News Agency that Rahimi's five-year conviction was 'due to a complaint from principlists' against him. He added, 'The source of activities, position, and characteristics of the political space that Mr. Rahimi occupied in the past was not principlism, and in dealing with his violations, the principlist current is proud.' Zakani claimed that Mehdi Hashemi Rafsanjani has a 'heavier and thicker' case than Mohammad Reza Rahimi and expressed hope that the judiciary would issue a 'decisive' ruling regarding him. Mohammad Reza Rahimi, the first vice president under Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has been sentenced to five years and 91 days in prison and ordered to pay 3 billion and 850 million tomans. New details reported by the Mizan news agency, affiliated with the judiciary, indicate that the amount Rahimi must pay has now increased to 5 billion and 700 million tomans, and a financial penalty and removal from public service have also been included in his sentence. The details of the charges against the former first vice president have not been fully disclosed, but Rahimi's name has been mentioned in several financial corruption cases. Regarding Rahimi's case, Mohammad Dehghan, a member of the parliamentary board, emphasized that principlists were pursuing Rahimi's case and criticized what he called the 'silence of reformists' regarding it. He stated on January 24 in an interview with Fars News Agency that Rahimi was once politically 'the closest person to the Kargozaran' and was strongly 'infatuated' with Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, who supported him in becoming a governor. Dehghan clarified, 'In the seventh and eighth parliament... due to his background and allegations of involvement in corruption, we opposed him taking responsibility.' Dehghan's statements come as Rahimi was elected as the head of the Court of Audit, which is a subsidiary of the parliament, by the votes of the seventh parliament representatives. The Tabnak website also reported on January 24 with the title 'Which Representatives Benefited from Rahimi's Money?' that the time frame of Rahimi's allegations coincides with the eighth parliamentary elections, where Mohammad Reza Naderi, Rahimi's lawyer, and Mahmoud Alizadeh Tabatabai, the lawyer for Shahram Jazayeri, claim that about 170 candidates in the eighth parliamentary elections 'used financial resources that have now led to Rahimi's imprisonment.' Mohammad Reza Rahimi, in a letter to Sadegh Amoli Larijani, the head of the judiciary, on September 8, rejected his charges, emphasizing that these allegations were related to 'conducting elections' and that he had submitted documents regarding financial assistance to the eighth parliamentary candidates to the court. Rahimi's lawyer also stated on October 25 that he had given money to 170 or 180 principlist representatives during the eighth parliamentary elections. The principlists' criticisms of Mohammad Reza Rahimi have prompted reactions from some Iranian news websites and newspapers. The Ebtekar newspaper, in an article titled 'Alzheimer's,' wrote: 'It was expected that some political groups would wait for Mohammad Reza Rahimi's ruling to respond to the strange statements and support of the ninth and tenth governments and their supporters regarding the integrity of these governments and their first vice president. However, no one expected that some principlists who previously supported Mahmoud Ahmadinejad would take the lead in this regard.' The Shargh newspaper also described the principlists' approach to Rahimi's financial corruption ruling as a 'forward escape' tactic, stating: 'Mohammad Rahimi played a role as Ahmadinejad's first vice president until the last day of the tenth government. The president also defended him vigorously, declaring him and his cabinet a red line that should not be crossed.' Morteza Hajji, a reformist government minister and board member of the Baran Foundation, told Shargh: 'The principlist current is trying to escape forward to prevent their current from being labeled with the name [Mohammad Reza] Rahimi.' While some Iranian parliament representatives consider the ruling against Rahimi to be final, Mohammad Reza Naderi, Rahimi's lawyer, stated that he does not accept the ruling and will request the application of Article 18 from the head of the judiciary. According to Article 18 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, if the final rulings of general and revolutionary courts, military courts, and the Supreme Court are deemed by the head of the judiciary to be contrary to clear religious law, they may be referred to a competent authority for retrial. Naderi stated on January 24 in an interview with Tasnim News Agency: 'This ruling is not acceptable to him, and it is clear that he is upset about it.' He added that no time has been set for the execution of the ruling against his client, stating: 'We are seeking a retrial, and we may also obtain an order to suspend the execution of the ruling.' Following the issuance of Mohammad Reza Rahimi's ruling, some parliament representatives have called for a swift ruling in Mehdi Hashemi's case. Hamid Rasai, a representative from Tehran, referring to the ruling against Mohammad Reza Rahimi, stated: 'We hope the judiciary... will act with precision and speed in examining other violations, including the case related to Fazel Larijani's request and its connection with the issue of Saeed Mortazavi, especially regarding Mehdi Hashemi's case.' Rasai mentioned on Saturday morning, November 10, coinciding with the fourteenth court session of Mehdi Hashemi, that he delivered a letter from 110 parliament representatives to the judge of the case 'for a public trial' and stated that a committee has been assigned the task of 'monitoring and tracking' the actions of the authorities regarding this case.