Mahmut Tanal set up a tent in front of the Ministry of Justice for students, and police intervention was not long in coming.

CHP Şanlıurfa Deputy Mahmut Tanal was in front of the Ministry of Justice building for the students who participated in the protests against the arrest of Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IBB) Mayor İmamoğlu and were detained and arrested.

Main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) Şanlıurfa Deputy Mahmut Tanal started a protest in front of the Ministry of Justice building in the capital Ankara on Tuesday. Following the incident, there was a police intervention at the tent. Tanal stated that he would "keep watch until morning" and said that he organized the protest for the "freedom of the detained youth and students." In a post he shared on the social media platform X, he expressed, "I am on a watch for FREEDOM and JUSTICE in front of the Ministry of Justice on Atatürk Boulevard from this evening until tomorrow morning for the youth and students who were unjustly arrested." In a short initial video, Tanal emphasized that his protest would "last until morning," pointing to the Ministry of Justice building. In the second video, a person is heard asking Tanal, "Will you stay here today?" Tanal responds, "Yes, I am on a watch for justice and freedom until morning. There are detained youth and students. I will keep watch here until morning for their freedom." In this video, he is setting up a single-person tent. Shortly after the incident, the police dismantled the tent set up by Tanal and took precautions in front of the ministry. Speaking to reporters, Tanal said, "I set up my tent, I brought my law books. The police took down my tent that I set up to avoid getting wet. Isn’t Turkey a rule of law? Why is there fear of the law?" While protests led by students against the arrest of IBB Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu continue, it was reported that police carried out raids at many addresses in Istanbul and Bursa early on Wednesday, March 26, and detained many individuals. According to T24's report, it was noted that Levent Dölek, the workplace representative academician of the Education and Science Workers' Union (Eğitim-Sen) supporting the boycott initiated by university students, was among those detained. After the arrest decision that came on March 23, Eğitim-Sen had supported university students who announced an academic boycott and decided not to attend classes. The Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office launched an investigation against Eğitim-Sen officials who supported the university students' call for a boycott by going on strike for one day. Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya announced that 1,418 people were detained since March 19, the date İmamoğlu was detained. In house raids conducted on Monday, 73 individuals, including journalists, were detained. It was reported that those detained on Tuesday morning would be released, but later in the hours, detention orders were issued for 11 of the journalists who were detained. The protests by university students are particularly concentrated on university campuses and city centers. Protests that began with İmamoğlu's detention and arrest continue with calls for boycotts and student marches at universities.

Massive march On Tuesday, thousands of students from many universities in Istanbul began a mass march from Maçka Park, protesting the appointment of a trustee to the Şişli Municipality. BBC Turkish noted that the students emphasized "non-partisanship" in their statement in front of the Şişli Municipality. "Our rebellion is the rebellion of a youth left without a future to reclaim their future," it was stated. Some student leaders called for a general strike. Student groups from various universities across Turkey called for a boycott on Monday, March 24, and held marches on campus. In Istanbul, student groups from Yıldız Technical University, Boğaziçi University, Istanbul Technical University, Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University, Istanbul University, and Bilgi University; from METU and Hacettepe in Ankara; and from Ege, Dokuz Eylul, and Izmir Democracy Universities in Izmir decided to boycott classes.

What happened? İmamoğlu was detained the day after his diploma from Istanbul University was annulled on March 18, and then arrested on March 23 under a 'corruption' investigation. This entire process came after investigations opened against the IBB President in recent weeks and before the CHP's presidential candidate primary. At the beginning of these investigations, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan also stated, "They know very well that the bigger turnips are still in the sack. This is the reason for their panic." However, on the same day as İmamoğlu's arrest, he was declared the CHP's presidential candidate with nearly 15 million votes. Following this, he was removed from his position as IBB President by a decision from the Ministry of Interior. The mass protests triggered by İmamoğlu's detention and subsequent arrest turned into the largest demonstrations seen in Turkey in over a decade. Thousands of people gathered in front of the municipality building in Saraçhane for seven days at the call of the CHP. CHP Chairman Özgür Özel stated that the last gathering in Saraçhane took place on Tuesday evening.