Multiple parties are preparing to submit motions this week for a parliamentary inquiry into former transport minister Kostas Karamanlis, following the fatal 2023 Tempi train crash that claimed 57 lives.
The center-left PASOK party is expected to submit its proposal this week, citing felony charges for disruption of transportation safety, based on evidence from the hefty case file. With over 30 MPs, PASOK has the numbers to move forward independently. While its primary focus is on Karamanlis, the party remains undecided about whether to include former SYRIZA minister Christos Spirtzis, due to concerns over the legal expiration of potential charges.
SYRIZA, meanwhile, plans to file its own motion, naming both Karamanlis and Spirtzis. However, without enough MPs to submit the proposal on its own, SYRIZA is seeking support from the New Left and independent lawmakers.
The ruling New Democracy party is expected to push for a more minimized approach. Rather than backing felony charges, the government plans to propose a lesser misdemeanor charge of breach of duty, with an emphasis on swiftly referring the matter to a judicial council. While this strategy aims to convey a sense of institutional responsibility, critics see it as an effort to shield Karamanlis from more serious legal consequences.
Amid these developments, a special parliamentary session was held today, Monday, May 12, to appoint members of the judicial council in a separate case involving Deputy Minister Christos Triantopoulos. He is a step further in the process, already facing judicial proceedings related to the Tempi crash, with allegations that he was involved in the illegal alteration of the accident site.
The selection of judicial council members is a formal, highly structured process. It involves a public draw from three transparent ballot boxes—representing the Supreme Court, the Council of State, and the Supreme Court Prosecutor’s Office.
From the Supreme Court, Fotini Milioni, Socrates Plastiras, Alexandra Apostolaki were drawn as regular members and Kostoula Prigouri and Erato Kolesi as alternate members. From the Council of State, Ioannis Dimitrakopoulos and Christos Papanikolaou were selected as a regular members with alternate member, Dimitris Makris. Georgia Adeilini was chosen as acting Prosecutor and Anastasios Skaras as her deputy.
Beyond Karamanlis and Triantopoulos, the judiciary may also weigh whether non-political individuals already named by the appeals investigator should face prosecution. As To Vima reports, there is “intense concern about whether, along with the ministers under investigation… the judiciary will decide on the possible referral of non-political individuals.”
