TEHRAN: President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad faced another sharp rebuke from opponents in parliament Tuesday as lawmakers dismissed his transportation minister in the wake of several deadly plane crashes in the country. The vote highlights the growing political fissures between Ahmadinejad and former conservative allies in parliament who accuse him of overstepping his powers, not being transparent and mismanaging the economy. Ahmadinejad appears in no danger of being toppled, but his critics could step up attacks before parliamentary elections early next year. The voting will mark the first key political test for Ahmadinejad's opponents since the turmoil after his disputed reelection in June 2009. The impeachment vote against Transport Minister Hamid Behbahani – which passed 147-78 with nine abstentions – was the most direct attack by the conservative-dominated parliament against Ahmadinejad's government. Critics of Behbahani have cited mismanagement, financial misappropriations, plane crashes and Iran's high death toll in road accidents. Behbahani and Ahmadinejad didn't attend the open parliamentary session, provoking parliamentary speaker Ali Larijani to denounce the no-show as a “violation” of procedure. “That the president orders his minister not to attend the parliament session is the ugliest sign of disrespect to the house,” prominent conservative lawmaker Ahmad Tavakoli told the chamber, prompting chants of “well done” from fellow lawmakers before the vote.
