Iran's Deputy Interior Minister Mostafa Tajzadeh was jailed for a year Sunday after being found guilty of fraud in last year's parliamentary vote, reported the Iranian News Agency (IRNA).
Tajazdeh, a reformist and close ally of President Mohammad Khatami, was given a one-year jail term by Tehran's administrative court, in addition to a 39-month bar on holding public office and a six-year ban on overseeing elections.
The deputy minister was found guilty of "complicity in electoral fraud" during the February 2000 election in which reformists were swept into the parliament, said IRNA.
The court also sentenced Tehran governor Ayatollahi Azarmi to 18 months in prison in addition to a 23-month ban from holding public office, also on charged of complicity in electoral fraud during the February legislative elections.
Tajzadeh had been charged with overseeing the upcoming June 8 presidential elections in the face of fierce opposition from conservatives, who said he could not be neutral.
He had strongly denied the charges against him, said the agency – Albawaba.com
© 2001 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
