September 06, 2019
The former chief of the Judiciary, Sadeq Larijani, has come under attack for alleged corruption in what many in Iran suspect is part of an effort to prevent him from becoming Supreme Leader after Ali Khamenehi does.
Larijani has been targeted by hardliner Ayatollah Mohammad Yazdi, who was Larijani’s predecessor as chief of the Judiciary and who is also often mentioned as a possible successor to Khamenehi.
Yazdi accused Larijani in August of corruption, an especially serious charge now that corruption is front and center and Khamenehi has promised a major effort to attack it.
What’s more, Yazdi also questioned Larijani’s credentials as a Shiite scholar, a qualification of concern to the Assembly of Experts, the body of 86 clerics that will choose Khamenehi’s successor when the post comes open.
Larijani, who now chairs the Expediency Council, responded angrily in a letter published on the Council’s official website. He accused Yazdi of being “rude” and “insulting” and complained that Yazdi was “repeating lies” about him.
He also accused Yazdi of hypocrisy, as he lives in a luxurious building while accusing Larijani of building a luxurious seminary.
Larijani did not, however, respond to charges made against him on state TV. He said that attacks against him, particularly on television, were part of “a pre-planned scenario” and “a bigger project” to tarnish his image.
He also asserted that he has a collection of secrets about high-ranking political figures and the children of Iran’s political elite. And he said he was aware of corruption among officials in various government offices, including the Pasdar intelligence arm. He didn’t say why he did nothing about that during the 10 years he headed the Judiciary until early his year.
Analysts generally believe the controversy is part of a campaign for succession in the post-Khamenehi era. Khamenehi turned 80 in April.
An analysis by Radio Farda’s Ehsan Mehrabi points to an “early succession campaign” among the contestants for Iran’s leadership, in which the campaign against corruption is simply a weapon to be used against rivals.
Mehrabi says Iranian analysts believe attacks on Larijani started from Khamenehi’s office, where one of the staff, hardliner Alireza Zakani, initiated it, possibly with Khamenehi’s or his office’s green light.
According to Mehrabi, for Khamenehi’s children and those in his office one assumption is that Ebrahim Raisi, another contender for the succession and the current chief of the Judiciary, would be easier to control than Larijani who has his own large network and a powerful family that includes Majlis Speaker Ali Larijani, a brother.
Another Radio Farda analyst, Reza Haqiqatnejad, notes that criticism of Sadeq Larijani and character assassination attempts against him started two years ago when his political rivals charged that his daughter was spying for the United Kingdom. Nothing ever came of those allegations.