"I wanted to protest. So I stood up and shouted out!"

A group of MPs rushed towards and disrupted a parliamentary speech by controversial Tehran MP Ali Motahari on Sunday, January 11, causing chaos and further divisions among Iran’s powerful elite. The politician has been in the limelight in recent weeks for his controversial statements and the news that he holds the power of attorney for Green Movement leader Mehdi Karroubi.

“Death to Seditionists,” some of the MPs called out. “Death to Traitors!”

Nader Ghazipour was one of the MPs who took a stand against Motahari. “We must tell some individuals that they can’t inherit the virtues of their father,” he told IranWire, referring to Morteza Motahari, one of the founders of and most influential thinkers behind the Islamic Republic. He added that there were limits to how much respect he was due because of this important family connection. Another parliamentarian, Safar Naeimi, who represents East Azarbaijan and is a member of the parliament’s Committee on National Security and Foreign Policy, said Motahari’s speech had the “smell” of someone who “supported the leaders of the Sedition [the Green Movement]. We had to protest.” 

Naeimi spoke to IranWire about the latest upset in Iran’s tense political landscape.

What happened in parliament on Sunday?

Mr. Motahari went to the podium during a public session. After a few words about other matters, he criticized the Supreme Council on National Security and the Judiciary and declared that the house arrest of Messrs. Mousavi and Karroubi and Ms. Rahnavard [Moussavi’s wife] must end. He named the leaders of the Sedition more than once.

What is wrong with naming Messrs. Mousavi and Karroubi and Ms. Rahnavard?

Look, it was the tone and the way he talked that suggested support for the leaders of the Sedition. It angered many hardliner MPs.

How did you react?

When I heard these names, I wanted to protest. So I stood up and shouted out, condemning the Sedition leaders and defending the revolution, the Supreme Council on National Security [which is responsible for the case of the Green Movement leaders] and the Judiciary.

You only shouted?

I got myself to the podium. I wanted to persuade Motahari to cut his speech short, but he insisted on carrying on. It led to a verbal confrontation. Of course, many representatives, most of them principalists [true to the tenets of Ayatollah Khomeini], stood to support me and repeated what I said.

Did the confrontation get physical?

The media reported that there was a physical confrontation but that wasn’t the case. It was only verbal.

But there were reports that Motahari’s hand was hurt in the course of this confrontation.

Perhaps he hit it on something when he slapped down his hand during his speech.

Do you think that parliament should allow these kinds of protests?

Certain subjects are red lines for us. Anyone who crosses them must be confronted. The dignity of parliament cannot allow him to support the leaders of the Sedition, to insult the regime and the revolution, to ignore the Imam’s way and the Leader’s intentions and to demean martyrs and their families, especially the martyrs of 2009. We had to protest.

Which parts of Motahari’s speech were insulting to the revolution and the regime?

He defended the leaders of the Sedition. This means insulting the revolution, insulting the system.

Do you not think that as a representative of the people, Mr. Motahari should be able to voice his views in parliament?

Mr. Motahari had a free podium and we had the right to protest. He had his rights and we had ours.

Read more about Ali Motahari and his record as a provocateur on IranWire:

Ali Motahari: Rattling the Regime by Reza HaghighatNejad, December, 2014

MPs Push for Trial of Green Movement Leaders by Reza HaghighatNejad, Jan. 2015