CHP MP Başarır to Kılıçdaroğlu: 'A Shameful Admission'

CHP MP Ali Mahir Başarır has sharply criticised former party chairman Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu's statement — 'If it were up to me, I would go to the party congress this very morning' — describing it as 'a shameful admission.' According to Cumhuriyet, Başarır argued that the remarks laid bare Kılıçdaroğlu's own stance during the party congress process in his own words.

It will be recalled that Kılıçdaroğlu was appointed CHP chairman after a court annulled — on grounds of 'absolute nullity' — a party congress election he had lost. That judicially grounded appointment process triggered deep tensions within the party and split it into rival camps; the congress dispute remained at the centre of CHP's internal agenda for a prolonged period.

That Başarır chose to fire this broadside during the holiday period underlines that the party's internal reckoning has not eased, even in a festive atmosphere. At the time of publication, no response had come from the Kılıçdaroğlu camp.