But according to Mr. Behzad Nabavi, the first vice-speaker, before the start of the new Iranian calendar year on March 21, the parliamentary presiding board received a subpoena order from an administrative court for Haqiqatjou, "But" he told IRNA, "the board decided not to notify her since the subpoena order contradicts the parliamentary governing by-law."

"The law holds that no MP could be arrested barely for addressing the MPs before the parliamentary session starts," he noted.
An overwhelming majority of lawmakers, among them vice-speakers Behzad Nabavi, Dr. Mohammad Reza Khatami, the younger brother of the President who leads the Majles largest reformist fraction and Mohsen Armin, the Secretary of the Organisation of Islamic Republic’s Mojahedeen (OIRM), a leftist pro-reform group, had called on the Speaker Hojjatoleslam Mehdi Karroubi, for an emergency meeting to review the "illegal and unconstitutional arrest" of Mrs. Haqiqatjou

In the letter, the signatories called on Karroubi to intervene to stop sporadic arrest of MPs, which, they said, is anti-constitutional and contradicts the parliamentary governing by-law.
Mrs. Haqiqatjoo was already summoned by a court on charges of inciting public opinion and insulting the judiciary, after, in a fiery speech in the House last month, she openly criticised the leader-controlled Judiciary over the brutal arrest of Mrs. Fariba Davoudi-Mohajer, a journalist affiliated with the Islamist-nationalists by agents sent to arrest her.

But she had refused to obey, stating that as a parliamentary deputy, she was entitled to immunity from prosecution for remarks made in the Majles, adding that in her opinion any summons issued to her would be a violation of the constitution. She also expressed her regret that the judiciary, which is tasked with upholding the constitution, would itself be guilty of violating it.

In fact, according to conservatives-controlled press, it was on the basis of confessions made in prison by Mr. Afshari that Mr. Ebrahim Sheykh, another student’s leader, was arrested three days ago.

Both Mr. Afshari and Mr. Sheikh members of the Central Council of the Union of Associations of Iranian Students, better known as the Office of Consolidating Unity (OCU), the Iranian students biggest pro-reform organisation.

According to this press, Mr. Afshari has told interrogators that some members of the OCU had moved closer to the Islamist-nationalists and plotting to topple the regime.
But observers reminded that Mr. Afshari had been taken alongside Mr. Ezzatollah Sahabi, a veteran politician and journalist, to an undisclosed prison believed to belong to the revolutionary guards intelligence units specialising in extracting confessions from inmates.

Days before the start of the new Iranian year of 1380 beginning on March 21, the Iranian judiciary, acting on orders from Mr. Khamenehe'i, raided the house of a prominent nationalist-religious affiliated to the Iran Freedom Movement and arrested him with his wife and 20 guests.

It also shut four more pro-reform and nationalist-religious publications, bringing to 35 the number of reformist press shut down since a year ago, when Mr. Khamenehe'i denounced the pro-reform press as "bases of the enemy".

It said that such setbacks could not stop the reformist MPs from promulgating the realities in the society.

The front also expressed deep concern over the arrest of Mr. Sheykh and the closure of four more publications, accusing the judiciary to seek to "mar the June presidential elections and inculcate disappointment into the minds of the people".