Anybody who frequently passes through Lutyens zone must have come across a road named after Mustafa Kemal Ataturk -the founding father of Republic of Turkey. In fact, Ataturk has been the most popular Turk leader in India, with cross-cutting popularity as well as the strongest pillar of Indo-Turkic friendship. However, his legacy is being  jeopardised in his home country itself as Erdogan is working on an ambitious agenda of projecting himself as the tallest leader of Turkey and undermining Ataturk’s legacy is a part of the same plan.


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During the opening ceremony of the converted Hagia Sophia mosque, Ali Erbas, head of Turkish religious directorate Diyanet, attacked Ataturk for converting the Islamic property to a museum. Besides, the highest administrative court of Turkey, Council of States in its judgments had criticized the decisions of Ataturk for converting Islamic monuments to museums without naming him, and eventually overturned Ataturk’s decisions.


As per some analysts,  “ The Turkish population as well as the world is noticing the pattern how Erdogan has been taking over the state institutions of Turkey to establish his authoritarian control. The Diyanet as well as the Council of States are the two major institutions that have been acting as puppets of Erdogan to help him fulfil his ambitions.”


In another sinister attempt to dent Ataturk’s heritage, Erdogan’s government banned the celebrations of Victory Day, falling on August 30, under the excuse of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Victory Day is one of the most important national days of Turkey when the Turkish President offers tributes at Kemal Ataturk’s mausoleum and delivers his speech during a grand celebration at the place. The day is also marked by celebrations all across the nation.


Critics and opposition parties have condemned Erdogan by arguing that while Victory Day celebrations have been abandoned on grounds of Covid-19 pandemic, yet  Hagia Sophia mosque was ‘opened for prayers and attended by around 3.5 lakh people. Also, other eminent days are still being celebrated, including the anniversary of the Battle of Manzikert and the July 15 coup attempt.


When Turkey is undertaking its normal day to day activities including examinations and tourism, the banning of Victory Day celebrations is being seen as Erdogan’s effort to omit Ataturk’s imprints from history and to undercut the influence of his thoughts on Turkish society.


In another effort to downplay Kemal Ataturk’s legacy, his iconic white train car was removed from display at the train terminal of Izmir on August 21. Though the decision was protested by civil society groups and the opposition, yet it was not restored at its location.


Reflecting a predetermined motive, Ataturk’s images are either found missing from national events or pushed to the corner with minimised size. Erdogan’s image has replaced Ataturk from almost every depiction and representations at the national level. Opposition parties and dissident organisations are challenging the moves of Erdogan to attack the founding father of Turkey.


Political parties like The Republican People's Party ( CHP)   and Good Party ( IVI)  have countered Erdogan in a scathing manner for banning Victory Day celebrations and damaging Ataturk’s image.


Similarly, Ataturkcu  Dusunce  Dernegi - an association working on Ataturkist thoughts has filed a petition in court against the decision of banning August 30 celebrations.


The association is also campaigning against the removal of Ataturk’s white train car from lzmir train terminal. Further, a prominent legal group, Adana Bar Association has filed a criminal suit against Diyanet’s head Ali  Erbas under “The Law Concerning Crimes Committed against Ataturk”  law for his comments against Ataturk on turning Hagia Sophia to a museum.


Harold Innis argued about the dimensions of space and time controlling the history and narratives. By subversions and using terrorist outfits to his advantage across the world, Erdogan is trying to champion the dimension of space and by removing the imprints of Ataturk and discontinuing his legacy, he has now started to work for conquering the dimension of time.


However, the intense resistance from opposition parties and civil society groups is an indication that the road is not going to be easy for Erdogan as it is impossible to erase Mustafa Kemal Ataturk from the consciences of Turkish society.