Iran's Karroubi vows to pursue vote complaint legally

TEHRAN, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Iran's defeated presidential candidate Mehdi Karroubi said he would pursue his complaint over vote results of Iran's recent presidential election legally, the local satellite Press TV reported on Thursday.

"Our right has been violated and we will legally pursue the matter," Karroubi was quoted as saying by Press TV, "I would continue my work within the framework of the Islamic establishment."

"The sweetness of the nation's massive turnout in the elections turned bitter and this has enraged the people, resulting in the self-initiated rallies in protest of the electoral process and its outcome," he said.

Commenting on the nature of the protests and protesters who came to the streets to voice their rage, he said, "People were not chanting slogans against the establishment, they shouted Allah Akbar (God is the greatest), wanting their right to be asserted and to know what happened to their vote."

Karroubi challenged the outcome of the election by suggesting that "the government can allow two simultaneous gatherings, one for the supporters of election winner Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and one for the defeated candidates, to see which gathering would draw more people."

On June 13, Iran's Interior Minister Sadeq Mahsouli said the incumbent President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad won 62.63 percent of the total ballots, while his main rival Mir-Hossein Mousavi got 33.75 percent.

The other two candidates, former parliament speaker Mehdi Karroubi and former Revolutionary Guards Chief Mohsen Rezaei, each got less than 2 percent of the total ballots.

After the official declaration, all the three defeated candidates filed complaints over irregularities in the election, while Mousavi and Karroubi have demanded an annulment of the election.

Rezaei withdrew his complaint to the Guardian Council over presidential election results on Wednesday.