BREAKING NEWS... 'Ramadan greeting' crisis at Zorlu Holding: Cem Köksal released under judicial control

The "Ramadan greeting" crisis within the senior management of Zorlu Holding has been brought to the judiciary. The Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office has launched an ex officio investigation into the incident. In this context, Cem Köksal, one of the holding's former senior executives, was detained.

According to T24, after completing his procedures at the police station, Köksal was referred to the courthouse, where the prosecutor's office requested he be placed under judicial control. The court decided to release Köksal under judicial control conditions.

WHAT HAPPENED?

Ergün Güler, CEO of Vestel, which is part of Zorlu Holding, had sent a message to employees on February 28th for the month of Ramadan. Zorlu Holding CEO Cem Köksal responded to Güler, who congratulated employees on the month of Ramadan, with the following message, which was visible to everyone:

"Ergün, the month of Ramadan is not on our list of days to be celebrated corporately. Among religious days, only Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha are included. It is not appropriate for us to celebrate other religious days corporately. The month of Ramadan has not been celebrated in the 70-year history of this group. As a company, we have a stance independent of religion. While trying to become a multinational company, we expect to have employees from every religion and nation. Therefore, I do not find it appropriate at all for us to make such a celebration corporately. I have warned you about similar issues before. Please ensure this is not repeated in any way. I especially request that you take this warning seriously."

Following the "Ramadan greeting" crisis in the senior management of Zorlu Holding, the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office had launched an ex officio investigation into Cem Köksal for the crime of "preventing the exercise of freedom of belief, thought, and opinion."

Making a statement regarding the matter, Köksal stated that "the correspondence was accidentally circulated within the company," and that he was "saddened that the correspondence, which was entirely about internal company operations and management, was reflected as a debate on 'belief and values,'" and announced that he had decided to resign so as not to harm the Zorlu group, where he had worked for 28 years.

Cem Köksal was detained yesterday as part of the investigation and taken to the Istanbul Police Department.

News Source: 12punto