Recent reports from Iran suggest that Kazem Sadighi, Tehran’s Friday Prayer Imam, has allegedly seized a property valued at over 10 trillion rials, amidst a backdrop of rampant corruption and embezzlement in the country. This development underscores the growing prevalence of such financial malfeasance, with headlines detailing multi-billion-dollar scandals becoming a regular occurrence in Iranian newspapers.
According to government media, in 2003, Kazem Sadighi, who then served in the judiciary, established a seminary in Tehran known as the “Khomeini Seminary.” This seminary, located in Ozgol District, among the best places in the country’s capital, gradually expanded under Sadighi’s ownership, now encompassing a property of approximately 23,000 square meters in northern Tehran.
The fate of a triangular garden measuring 4,200 square meters situated in the northeastern corner of this property has sparked controversy. Allegedly, it ended up being owned by a company for personal exploitation, owned by Kazem Sadighi and his children, with an estimated value exceeding 1,000 billion tomans.
Furthermore, a company named Peyrovan Andishehaye Qaem (PAE) [Persian for Followers of Imam Mahdi] was founded in Iran in 2023. The composition of the founders and the board members of this company indicates that Kazem Sedighi and his children are its principal owners:
- Kazem Rajabi Sedighi
- Mohammad Hossein Rajabi Sedighi, his son
- Mohammad Mahdi Rajabi Sedighi, his son
- Rezvaneh Ghavam, Sedighi’s daughter-in-law, is also introduced as an inspector of this company
The company also counts Adel Mohseni and Javad Azizi among its members. Azizi previously served as a manager in the Tehran Municipality during the tenure of Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf (the current Speaker of the Majlis) and now sits on the board of directors of PAE Company. Intriguingly, the company has registered ownership of a section of lands belonging to a seminary under its own name.
It’s notable that Javad Azizi has faced multiple legal issues regarding corruption and bribery during his time at the Tehran Municipality. Additionally, Fazlollah Beigordi is listed as the head of Kazem Sedighi’s security detail and serves as an alternate inspector for this company. Moreover, ownership of certain lands linked to the Khomeini Seminary has been transferred to the PAE Company.
Information indicates that there is no direct link between this company and the Khomeini Seminary. Nevertheless, in an unusual twist, the company has been registered as the owner of the seminary’s land. Discussions with real estate professionals familiar with the property rates in northern Tehran, suggest that its value ranges from approximately 130 to 300 million tomans. However, state media have placed a much higher estimate on the property’s worth, valuing it at around 1,000 billion tomans.
Kazem Sedighi is currently the temporary Friday Prayer leader of Tehran and the founder and manager of the Khomeini Seminary. He has held various important positions in the Judiciary and governance structures at different times.
The custodian of the Khomeini Seminary, the Vice President of the Management Council of the Tehran Seminary, the head of the Judiciary’s disciplinary court judges are among “his responsibilities.” He has also been the head of the Judiciary’s Supreme Disciplinary Court and is currently the head of Khamenei’s “Command Headquarters for Promoting Virtue and Prohibiting Vice,” an organization aimed at encouraging ordinary people to stay away from sin and engage in virtuous deeds.
It’s noteworthy that Sedighi, alongside Morteza Aghatehrani and Hamid Rasaee, is part of a faction striving for increased influence within Iran’s ruling hierarchy in recent years. Tensions have escalated in recent months between this faction and another aligned with Parliament Speaker Ghalibaf, touching on issues such as the “Hijab and Chastity Law” and intensified rivalry during the latest parliamentary elections. These developments underscore the factional battles within the Khamenei camp.
Sedighi’s appointment as the Friday Prayer leader in Tehran has seen him employ the platform to deliver sermons on virtue, frequently criticizing those who amass wealth while exploiting the poverty of ordinary citizens. In December 2021, Sedighi claimed that people’s overall quality of life was improving, citing the ability of some to afford vacations in the northern part of the country as evidence.
