Individual Application

The Facts

The applicant, who is the Chairman of the Republican People’s Party (CHP), shared some of his claims regarding the Kayseri Metropolitan Municipality with the public in the General Assembly of the Turkish Grand National Assembly, in the group meetings of his party, and in press statements and television programs.

In the case filed by the then-Mayor against these claims of the applicant, the Civil Court of General Jurisdiction ordered compensation award against the applicant. The Court of Cassation upheld the decision. The applicant’s request for rectification was dismissed. Thereupon, the applicant lodged an individual application.

The Applicant’s Allegations

The applicant claimed that his freedom of expression was violated on the ground that he was imposed compensation for expressing some claims.

The Constitutional Court’s Assessment

According to Law no. 6216 and the Internal Regulations of the Constitutional Court, individual applications must be lodged within thirty days starting from the exhaustion of legal remedies or from the date when the violation is known, if no remedy is available.

In the present case, the period of thirty days started on 14 May 2014 when the applicant became aware of the final decision of the Court of Cassation on dismissal of his request for rectification. However, the applicant lodged an individual application on 16 May 2015, after the expiry of this period.

Consequently, the Constitutional Court found the present application inadmissible for having been lodged out of time.