The impartiality of the German justice system has come into question once more following Germany's Justice Minister Heiko Maas' summoning of Chief Prosecutor Peter Frank to the ministry early last week for his inability to compile evidence against the four imams affiliated with the Turkish-Islamic Union for Religious Affairs (DİTİB). Maas's controversial move in the ongoing investigation came after the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) announced they had found no evidence linking the DİTİB imams with spies.

Turkish-German relations continue to remain on tenterhooks, particularly after this crisis, which began when German police raided the homes of four imams affiliated with the DİTİB on grounds that they had conducted espionage on behalf of the Turkish government against the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ) that is accused of masterminding the failed July 15 coup attempt last year. Minister Maas has interfered with the judiciary, holding a two-hour meeting with Frank for lack of any evidence supporting the allegations against the imams. According to a statement by a German Justice Ministry spokesperson, Frank was summoned on March 22 to the BfV in Berlin, where Maas acquired "clarification" on the investigation of the DİTİB imams.However, the BfV in North Rhine-Westphalia found no evidence linking the DİTİB to spying allegations. Ralf Jaeger, the interior minister of North-Rhine Westphalia, said last week that the DİTİB has no connection with spies, pointing out that reports on "spying activity" differed in quality and quantity.While Germany criticizes Turkey for "impartiality in the Turkish justice system," the recent move by Maas is considered a resolute effort to politically influence the judiciary, with deputy chairwoman of Europe-based nongovernmental organization Union of European Turkish Democrats (UETD) Asiye Bilgin telling Daily Sabah: "I, personally, am not surprised by the incident. However, it is highly concerning to see what the justice system has come to. It raises questions as to how an investigation that is interrupted by the Justice Ministry could be impartial and unbiased."She went on to say that many unlawful acts are being carried out in Germany due to the current anti-Turkey and anti-Erdoğan sentiments across the country. "The incident clearly shows that the investigation is being politicized; especially given the current atmosphere and Maas' biased position," Bilgin added.The minister's interference with the justice system and his attempts to influence investigations are nothing new, as Maas previously dismissed the country's former Chief Federal Prosecutor Harald Range in a treason investigation against two journalists who had reported on Germany's domestic spy agency's plans to expand its surveillance of online communications. Range accused the German government of interfering, with attempts to "exert influence on an investigation because its possible outcome may not be politically opportune," calling such meddling "an intolerable encroachment on the independence of the judiciary." The Organization for Security Cooperation in Europe commented on the matter, with freedom of media representative Dunja Mijatović writing: "I believe that in cases of possible breaches of confidentiality or state confidentiality regulations, the authorities should refrain from trailing the media whose job it is to investigate and report on the issues of public importance."Despite the commercial, economic and cultural ties between Turkey and Germany, diplomatic relations between the two countries have hit a new low with the DİTİB investigation. German police conducted raids on the houses of four DİTİB workers in the states of North Rhine-Westphalia and Rhineland-Palatinate last month upon the issuing of a warrant by the Federal Public Prosecutor's Office. While Maas said that DİTİB must "disengage itself from Ankara," Turkey's Presidency of Religious Affairs (Diyanet) has since rejected accusations of spying since the issue surfaced, noting that an order hasn't been send to DİTİB as it is a separate organization. Mustafa Yeneroğlu, chairman of the Turkish parliament's Human Rights Investigation Committee and a Justice and Development Party (AK Party) deputy, also said previously that the action is "politically motivated."