On April 7, President and ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) Chair Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and the Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency (BDDK) have filed a criminal complaint against FOX TV news anchor Fatih Portakal on the grounds of Portakal’s social media message that he has published via Twitter.
While President Erdoğan has complained against Portakal for allegedly “posting false social media messages to manipulate the public”, the BDDK has argued that the anchor has “shared unreal and intentional social media messages about the banking and fiscal system.”
İstanbul Prosecution Office prepared an indictment for allegedly violating the Banking Law upon a complaint by the Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency (BDDK). News anchor is charged with violating Article 74 of the law, titled “Protection of Reputation.”
Portakal is facing charges for a comment he made on the government’s economic measures for the coronavirus pandemic. He had said in a tweet in early April that “he wouldn’t be surprised” if the government imposed a “National Tax,” referring to a practice during the country’s War of Independence in the early 1920s.
During the first hearing held on September 24, the Istanbul’s 46th Criminal Court of First Instance ruled to merge a separate indictment issued against Fatih Portakal on the charge of “insulting the president” over the same Twitter post. The next trail will be on November 5 (September 24).
The hearing expected to be held on November 5, 2020 could not be held on the grounds that the judge of the İstanbul 46th Criminal Court of First Instance was on leave. The date of the next hearing will be set in the upcoming days (November 5).
At the final hearing held on March 3, 2021, Fatih Portakal, on trial over a social media post, was acquitted of both “violation of the Banking Law” and “insulting the President of the Republic” (March 3).
