Rafsanjani’s Memoir Narrative Confirmed by Khomeini’s Relatives

Last week veteran Iranian politician and current head of the State Expediency Council, which is officially charged with resolving critical Majlis and government political differences, talked of a historic episode in which ayatollah Khomeini’s wife had advised him to run for president in 2005. This brought critical responses from Rafsanjani’s foes, mostly hardliners. Nothing new until this point, until what followed next. Two days ago, some members of Khomeini’s family publicly threw their weight behind Rafsanjani’s narrative and confirmed his remarks.

Rafsanjani made the remarks during an event that was organized to honor ayatollah Khomeini’s wife, Khadije Taghafi. In his presentation Rafsanjani questioned focusing on women’s attire at the expense of other issues such as prisoners, equality of laws, etc. His remarks then turned to the 2005 presidential elections and he said, “Not a single hair on my body wished to run in the presidential race and everyone knew I was not going to run. But then ayatollah Khomeini’s wife called on me and said that the imam (i.e., the title used for ayatollah Khomeini in the Islamic republic) had left the revolution in your hands, adding but who do you wish to hand it over to. Do you even know who these people are? I came to myself and my eyes filled with tears. It was then that I signed up my name to run.”

The next day, Hossein Shariatmadari, the editor of Kayhan group of newspapers appointed directly by the country’s current leader ayatollah Khamenei questioned the authenticity of the story and Rafsanjani’s motives for relating the event. “Why does Mr. Rafsanjani cite individuals who are no longer around thus denying the possibility of verifying the authenticity of such remarks? Mr. Rafsanjani had attributed other quotes to the imam, and in one case that he had been against the public chanting of death to America, which is contrary to existing resources,” he wrote. Shariatmadari is commonly recognized to speak for the hardliners in the Islamic republic of Iran.

Verbal attacks on Rafsanjani from the hardliners are not a new event in the Islamic republic. But what made them different this time was that members of ayatollah Khomeini’s household confirmed this episode. Rafsanjani supporters approached Ali Motahari, another firebrand Majlis speaker and son of the ideologue of the Islamic revolution who was assassinated in the early days of the revolution, for support, and he gave it. “We must have trust in ayatollah Khomeini’s closest friends such as Mr. Rafsanjani. Otherwise we will have to doubt the whole notion of the revolution,” he responded.

Ana news agency affiliated to pro-Rafsanjani quarters also published an interview with ayatollah Tavasoli who was the head of ayatollah Khomeini’s office. He conformed Rafsanjani’s narrative.

Hossein Abdollahi, the managing editor of Arman newspaper, a publication close to Rafsanjani’s family also wrote a piece in support of the remarks and their authenticity. “These remarks come more than 23 months after the new administration has come to office and so they are not politically motivated,” he said.

But among those presenting a different version of remarks is former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s wife, Parvin Ahmadinejad. She narrated a story in which she had met Khomeini’s wife prior to elections who expressed her satisfaction for doctor (Ahmadinejad) to win adding she would give treats to public. Parvin Ahmadinejad and Fatemeh Rafsanjani had exchanged jibes in 2012, accusing and counter-accusing each other.

The next step was to go to members of Khomeini’s family for their response. Rashid Dawoodi, a researcher and student of seyed Hassan Khomeini was approached and he told Entekhab website that Zahra Mostafavi, ayatollah Khomeini’s daughter, and also Masih Borujerdi who is Khomeini’s grandson, both confirmed Rafsanjani’s narrative. Dawoodi even said that this episode had been earlier publicly related in 2009 also.

Gholamali Rajai, an advisor to the head of the State Expediency Council also quoted Lili Borujerdi, Zahra Mostafavi’s daughter, to have completely confirmed Rafsanjani’s remarks through a telephone conversation by saying she was present when the conversation between Mr. Rafsanjani and ayatollah Khomeini’s wife took place. Lili Borujerdi went further and also rejected Parvin Ahmadinejad’s story about Khomeini’s wife supporting an Ahmadinejad presidential victory. According to Lili, Khomeini’s wife had in fact said that she did not vote for Ahmadinejad.