Editor-in-Chief of Shargh Newspaper Found Guilty

The jury of political courts unanimously found Mehdi Rahmanyan, editor-in-chief of Shargh newspaper, guilty following his defense statement.

Shargh Network, which is affiliated with Shargh newspaper, reported on Tuesday, November 24, based on its own poll conducted with the participation of over 12,300 people, that 84 percent of people opposed mandatory hijab enforcement for women. Mehdi Rahmanyan, editor-in-chief of Shargh newspaper, was summoned to court in November of this year due to the publication of the Shargh Network poll. The judiciary news agency emphasized in this regard that if the necessary documents and evidence are not provided, the Tehran prosecutor’s office would file charges against this media outlet.

Today, Monday, December 18, Akbar Nasrallahi, spokesperson of the jury of political and press courts, said regarding Mehdi Rahmanyan: “Mehdi Rahmanyan’s charge of ‘publishing false content’ is the subject of the Tehran prosecutor’s complaint about the incorrect headline regarding 84 percent opposition to mandatory hijab enforcement for women on November 24, 1402. Mehdi Rahmanyan acknowledged the error in the headline in his defense statement and stated that it was even more erroneous that foreign media wrote that 84 percent of respondents oppose hijab, whereas 84 percent of Shargh’s audience in this newspaper’s poll opposed the statements of Ms. Zohreh Sadat Lajwardi, Tehran’s representative in the Islamic Consultative Assembly, regarding the impact of a potential chastity and hijab law on women’s hijab situation, not mandatory hijab enforcement for women.”

Akbar Nasrallahi, regarding Mehdi Rahmanyan’s charges and the political court’s verdict, added: “The jury, after hearing the defendant’s defense statement, unanimously found him guilty, and some members in their dissenting opinions stated that based on the defendant’s explanation, only 5 percent of the 12,000 poll respondents to Shargh’s survey opposed mandatory hijab, not 84 percent.”

Some members of the jury also stated that by searching the keywords ‘hijab and Shargh’ on Google, the incorrect publication of this poll had the highest frequency, which continues to be used for political exploitation.

The court hearing the complaint of the press supervision board regarding Mehdi Rahmanyan’s case, editor-in-chief of Shargh newspaper, was held by Judge Karimi in Branch Nine of Criminal Court One, and the result will be issued.