Riot police stormed the Istanbul headquarters of the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) on 8 September, forcing entry after hours of clashes to escort court-appointed interim chief Gursel Tekin inside.

The Istanbul 45^th Civil Court of First Instance had dismissed provincial head Ozgur Celik last week, ruling that delegate votes in the party’s 2023 provincial congress were influenced by alleged bribery.

The court threw out the elected board and named former CHP deputy chair Tekin as interim provincial head, a decision rejected by both Celik and CHP headquarters.

Tekin, who earlier said he would not enter the headquarters with police, requested riot police support after both the CHP headquarters and Celik rejected his appointment.

He arrived to find the building barricaded and occupied by party members, including MPs.

Riot police used pepper spray and shields to disperse demonstrators, with CHP member Suat Ozcagdas telling Halk TV that officers fired tear gas “inch by inch” as they moved floor by floor inside the building.

“There are elderly people and people with asthma. On every floor they enter with gas. This is a human rights violation,” he said.

Protests began on Sunday, when the CHP called on Istanbul residents to gather outside its offices after police cordoned off the site.

Earlier on Monday, several political influencers who had voiced support for the protests were detained.

Internet watchdogs reported bandwidth throttling that slowed access to social media platforms.

The CHP denounced the takeover as a “siege.”

In a separate interview with the Financial Times (FT), party leader Ozgur Ozel accused the government of staging “a coup against the future ruling party.”

“They are trying to take over the party that won the last election, was the founding party of the Turkish republic, is the party leading every poll … We’re facing an authoritarian government and … the only option is to resist,” he said.

In Istanbul, Tekin claimed those resisting him “were not CHP members.”

“Nothing can stop us, even if they shoot us,” he said, insisting he would not back down, after a water bottle was thrown at him as he attempted a press statement.

The party’s general headquarters later announced it would close its provincial branch headquarters and operate from another location until a new Istanbul congress is held.

The Istanbul decision has drawn attention to a separate lawsuit in Ankara, scheduled for 15 September, which could annul the results of the CHP’s 38^th Ordinary Congress in 2023 and unseat Ozel.

Since October 2024, more than 500 CHP members and officials have been detained nationwide, according to state disclosures reviewed by Reuters in July.

The arrests have included Istanbul mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, who is Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s main rival, and 16 CHP mayors accused of corruption. CHP figures have described the campaign as a political operation to dismantle the party after its victories in last year’s local elections.