TEHRAN – A number of lawmakers, representing Azeri-populated cities in West Azarbaijan province, are trying to push impeachment of transport minister due to poor management of the ministry’s affaires, the Mehr News Agency reported on Tuesday.

The move has come following the crash of an Iran Air Boeing 727 which occurred near Urmia, the capital city of West Azarbaijan province, on January 9 in which 78 passengers were killed and 33 were injured.
The relevant officials insisted that bad weather caused the incident, but a number of MPs said the plane was too old and probably crashed due to a technical failure.
So far, 25 MPs have signed the proposal for impeachment of the Transport Minister Hamid Behbahani, so the minister can be impeached.
But some members of the Majlis presiding board have called on the MPs signing the impeachment motion to abandon their move and settle the issue through dialogue.
Long flight delays, repetition of air crashes, mismanagement of the Transport Ministry, poor situation of road transport, and long delays in the implementation of road construction projects have been cited as the reasons for impeachment of the minister.
The recent plane crash in Urmia provoked severe criticism from a number of MPs and experts who believed that the incident occurred due to the inefficient management of the country’s air transport system.
But, the minster responded to the criticisms, saying, “The number of plane incidents in Iran is low compared to the international average.”
In January 2010 Behbahani was summoned to the Majlis to account for back-to-back train and plane accidents.
Following a plane crash in Mashhad, and the derailment of Tehran-Mashhad and Tehran-Kerman trains, which occurred in 2010, the Majlis Development Committee decided to summon the transport minster to explain the causes of the accidents.