Turkey's Ihsanoglu takes a swipe at PM's 'language'

There is no respect in Turkey's presidential campaign, presidential candidate Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu has said, criticizing Prime Minister and presidential rival Recep Tayyip Erdogan at a meeting with Alevi leaders in Istanbul on Wednesday.

Ihsanoglu, in an apparent shift of tone, expressed his discontent with the language which Erdogan has used in the run up to the election, scheduled for August 10.

Erdogan has regularly described Ihsanoglu as "mon cheri" which in Turkish culture denotes someone who is elitist or removed from society.

Claiming "there is no respect for religion," Ihsanoglu said: "I don't know how many times I read Surah Al Hujurat [from the Quran] meaning 'O you who have believed, let not a people ridicule [another] people; perhaps they may be better than them; and do not insult one another and do not call each other by [offensive] nicknames'."

Ihsanoglu is a religious scholar and the former head of the Organization of Islamic Co-operation.

"Turkey has never witnessed such a language and manner. We are not having elections for the first time. We have never seen such nicknames ... Turkish people are appalled in the face of such discourse," he added. 

Ihsanoglu is viewed as the main challenger to Erdogan, who is standing for the ruling Justice and Development Party, and who is suspected of wanting to increase the powers of the presidency.

Ihsanoglu was nominated as the political opposition's joint candidate for the presidency last month. Among the 10 parties supporting him are the main opposition Republican Peoples' Party and the Nationalist Movement Party.