Ahmadinejad cautioned Larijani in a video clip circulated by Dolate Bahar, a website promoting him and his allies, saying, “Sadly, the head of judiciary, who is expected to respect the Islamic Republic’s Constitution and general laws more than anybody else, has repeatedly violated articles 36 and 37 of the Constitution.”
Article 36 of the Constitution refers to due process of law, while Article 37 states, “The law does not consider anyone guilty unless the person’s guilt is proven at a qualified court.”
However, it is unclear when the 48-hour deadline ends.
The former president responded to comments made y Larijani at a meeting with university students last week, “The head of judiciary has charged me and my colleagues with a list of accusations. He has described us as ‘seditionist’, ‘devious’…”
Mizan news website, affiliated with the Islamic Republic’s judiciary, wrote, “During a meeting with university students on Wednesday, December 13, ayatollah Amoli Larijani accused Ahmadinejad and his close allies of weakening the ruling system through debilitating the judiciary.”
Ahmadinejad pointed to the case of Babak Zanjani, who has been imprisoned for embezzlement of Iran’s oil money, saying, “If my government or others have had any connection with his case, we expect the judiciary to disclose the documents affirming the existence of such relations.”
The former president declared that he will defend people’s rights against the Islamic Republic’s judicial organ. “More than ever, this is the right time to defend the oppressed against the judiciary. If the judiciary is reformed, everything would be set aright in Iran”, Ahmadinejad said, adding, “These people must go and, soon they will be gone.”
He responded to criticism that he was silent in the face of the justice system’s “unfair” and “unjust” actions through his eight years of presidency, Ahmadinejad said, “We were truly unaware of the unjustifiable actions by the judiciary at the time. We really did not know but later we were informed [of many facts],” and argued, “As you are not aware of many facts for the moment, we were also unaware of many cases and kept in the dark at the time. Nevertheless, God willing, you will soon be informed of the facts, as well.”
