The Turkish Ministry of Justice issued a statement on the rumours of pre-election talks with Abdullah Öcalan. According to the ministry, only a technical team has been to the prison island of Imrali to inspect storm damage to service buildings. The storm on 5-7 February caused damage to the roofs of the service buildings and facilities used by the security forces, as a result of which the Bursa Chief Public Prosecutor's Office asked the General Directorate of Prisons and Detention Centres for an assessment on 1 March 2023.

The statement issued by the Ministry of Justice on Saturday also said:

"In this sense, on 21 March 2023, a technical team of a total of four persons, consisting of a mechanical engineer from the Support Services Department of the General Directorate of Prisons and Detention, civil and electrical engineers from the Support Services Department of the Ministry of Justice, and the investigating magistrate in charge of the Construction and Real Estate Office of the Support Services Department of the General Directorate of Prisons and Detention, who leads and coordinates the team, was assigned to carry out an inspection in the said facility after obtaining the official approvals. Based on the aforementioned approvals, technical investigations were carried out on the island and the report on the necessary changes and reinforcements was submitted to the Directorate General. Only the service buildings and the facilities used by the Gendarmerie Security Command on Imrali Island were inspected, but no inspection or audit was carried out in the prison department where the prisoners are housed. While the documents and facts are obvious, news and statements that are nevertheless made distort this fact."