Turkish pop star faces up to 3 years in jail after religious school remarks

Prosecutors in Turkey asked for 1-3 years of jail sentence for an unconventional pop star who mocked a friend on stage with his religious school background.

Singer songwriter Gulsen, famously known for her stage costumes that defy conservatives and her open support for LGBT groups was jailed pending trial  last week but released four days later on condition of house arrest after heavy criticism from rights groups. 

The investigation started as video footage from one of her concerts circulated on social media, where she was heard saying "He had studied at a imam-hatip school before. This is where his perversion comes from." She does not say the name of the person in the video but she later said she was referring to a musician in her band whose nickname was “imam.”

The remarks by the offbeat artist sparked an immense reaction among the conservatives as one islamic magazine drew her caricature in a pool of turd and a former islamist party official said she should be killed. 

702 plaintiffs signed the indictment against Gulsen, including industry minister Mustafa Varank and the Women and Democracy Association (KADEM) whose chairman of the board of trustees is President Tayyip Erdogan’s daughter