Iranian MP Ali Motahari says there are no legal grounds for the Tehran Prosecutor to start a legal action against him.

ISNA reports that Motahari has said that he has in no way “insulted or libeled” anyone in his statements and he has merely criticized the head of the judiciary.

On Sunday, in a speech to Parliament, Motahari criticized the judiciary for failing to review some of the “severe sentences” issued to political prisoners during the 2009 election protests. He also suggested that these sentences were influenced by security forces and thus compromised the independence of the judiciary.

On the following day, December 30, the Tehran Prosecutor announced that it is starting legal proceedings against Ali Motahari.

Motahari was quoted as saying: “We expected the head of the judiciary to have been more accepting of criticism; in the past he has also shown that he cannot handle criticism. However, if a member of Parliament cannot even speak of such things, then they should close down Parliament.”

Radio Zamaneh