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World

Turkish PM Erdogan to sue opposition leader over claim he had a gold-plated toilet seat

Associated Press
Published | Updated
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    FILE - In this March 12, 2015 file photo, honour guard wait for a ceremony inside the new palace of Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Erdogan has invited Kemal Kilicdaroglu, the main opposition Republican People's Party, or CHP, leader, to inspect toilets in his lavish, 1,150-room palace after the politician claimed that it had gold-plated toilet seats. CHP leader and other opposition parties accuse Erdogan of excessive spending by the president of tax-payer money on luxuries. On Sunday, Erdogan told state-run TRT television in an interview that he would resign if Kilicdaroglu found a gold-plated toilet seat at the $620 million palace. Turkey holds a general election on Sunday.(AP Photo/Burhan Ozbilici, File) (The Associated Press)

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    FILE -In this March 12, 2015 file photo, honour guard in old Turkish soldiers' uniforms wait for a ceremony inside the new palace of Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Erdogan has invited Kemal Kilicdaroglu, the main opposition Republican People's Party, or CHP, leader, to inspect toilets in his lavish, 1,150-room palace after the politician claimed that it had gold-plated toilet seats. CHP leader and other opposition parties accuse Erdogan of excessive spending by the president of tax-payer money on luxuries. On Sunday, Erdogan told state-run TRT television in an interview that he would resign if Kilicdaroglu found a gold-plated toilet seat at the $620 million palace.Turkey holds general elections on Sunday. (AP Photo/Burhan Ozbilici, File) (The Associated Press)

ANKARA, Turkey – Turkey's president is suing the country's opposition leader for slander for allegedly claiming before a national election that bathrooms in his 1,115-room palace had gold-plated seats.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's lawyer told the state-run Anadolu Agency on Tuesday that he would seek compensation from main opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu.

Kilicdaroglu denied in a television interview late Monday that he made the claim. He insisted he had referred to gold-plated toilet seats as a general criticism of lavish lifestyles by officials and that "Erdogan took it personally."

Turkey holds its parliamentary election on Sunday.

Although Erdogan is supposed to be above politics and isn't running, he has been campaigning for a victory by the ruling AKP party, which he led for more than a decade as prime minister.