Kostas Karamanlis: Greek parliament to investigate ex-transport minister over deadly Tempi train crash
Greece’s former transport minister Kostas Karamanlis is under formal investigation after parliament voted early Thursday to examine his role in the country’s worst-ever train disaster, which killed 57 people in February 2023.
The vote, which followed hours of heated debate, clears the way for a special parliamentary committee to determine whether Karamanlis' immunity should be lifted so that he can face possible criminal indictment. Karamanlis, who is from the ruling New Democracy party, said during the debate: “I have nothing to hide,” and personally requested to be referred to both the committee and the judicial authorities.
Under Greek law, only parliament can initiate legal proceedings against former ministers. The investigation will focus on whether Karamanlis holds any responsibility for the conditions that led to the head-on collision between a passenger and a freight train in the Tempi Valley, which left most victims dead or injured due to a subsequent fireball.
New Democracy, which holds a majority in parliament, proposed to investigate only Karamanlis and only on felony charges. Opposition party PASOK tabled a broader motion naming eight officials, while another group of citizens, including a victim’s relative and backed by smaller parties, pushed for an investigation into 11 figures, including Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, with accusations of high treason.
The narrower government-backed proposal ultimately passed, prompting accusations from opposition lawmakers that it was an effort to shield other officials from scrutiny. Last year, the government dismissed a call from the European Public Prosecutor’s Office to investigate Karamanlis over alleged misappropriation of EU funds linked to rail safety.
A recent report by the National Organisation for the Investigation of Rail and Air Accidents confirmed that the freight train was carrying illegal, highly flammable cargo, intensifying the fire that claimed dozens of lives, mostly students returning from a holiday.
One of the most vocal critics of the government has been Maria Karystianou, a paediatrician whose 20-year-old daughter died in the crash. As president of the Tempi Victims' Relatives Association, Karystianou recently revealed she received a death threat after accusing Prime Minister Mitsotakis of “high treason.”
“A few days ago, I received a death threat in response to my accusation of high treason,” Karystianou told Greek outlet in.gr. “What I was told is that simply associating the name of the Mitsotakis family with the crime of high treason is an act that cannot go unpunished.” She added that the threat included “some other, less polite words” but declined to repeat them on camera.
She has lodged a formal complaint with Greece’s Organised Crime Unit, which confirmed it has launched an investigation. Karystianou stressed that the threat came “supposedly for my own good,” but added: “Taken as a whole, I don’t think our conversation could have been any more threatening.”
Greek rail drivers also held 24-hour strike earlier this week to demand sweeping safety reforms.