AKP, CHP in dispute over state of emergency extension

The leaders of Turkey's ruling and main opposition party disagreed over the government's plan to extend the state of emergency for another term at a face-to-face meeting on Sept. 22, when the latter raised his concerns over the growing number of complaints of "reckless measures" resulting from decree laws in the aftermath of the failed coup attempt of July 15. 

Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım and Republican People's Party (CHP) head Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu held an around two-hour-long meeting at the ruling party's headquarters upon the request of the main opposition leader.

Kılıçdaroğlu wanted to meet the prime minister in order to inform him about complaints his party had received from more than 37,000 people who claimed to have been negatively affected by the mass purges from the civil service due to alleged links to the Gülenist network, which was blamed for the coup attempt.

The number of people who have suffered from the government's "reckless measures" against suspected Gülenists within the civil service has hit 1 million, the main opposition leader said previously.

"The prime minister signaled that the government can extend the state of emergency. But our chairman objected to the idea," sources from the main opposition party told reporters after the meeting. 

The government declared the state of emergency for three months on July 21 in a bid to efficiently fight against the Gülenist network and its undercover members within the state. The government is now planning to extend it for another term on the grounds that the Gülenist clearing process has not been fully completed yet. The votes of the ruling party are sufficient to extend the state of emergency. 

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