A court in Ankara has nullified the 2023 congress of Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), stripping its leadership of legitimacy and triggering one of the country's most serious political crises in years. Riot police deployed tear gas and rubber bullets at the party's headquarters as elected officials barricaded themselves inside, while rival factions simultaneously claimed the right to lead the party. The ruling has gone well beyond an internal dispute, raising broader questions about whether political authority in Turkey still rests on democratic consent or judicial and institutional pressure.