Judiciary chief Ayatollah Sadegh Larijani’s latest remarks on freedom of the press in Iran featured on almost every front page in the country Nov. 8, and heated the debate that emerged with the opening of the Press Exhibition in Tehran on Nov. 4.

“Some pressure us by asking, 'Why don’t you shut down that newspaper?' while others ask, 'Why have you banned that newspaper?'” Larijani said Nov. 7. “All I can say [in response] to these pressures is that we [the judiciary] pursue our path only by following the constitution and Islamic law.”

In response to President Hassan Rouhani’s speech at the opening ceremony of the 22nd Press and News Agencies Exhibition on Nov. 4, Larijani accused him of harboring double standards on freedom of the press.

“On several occasions you complained about why we didn’t have [a judicial] approach to this newspaper or that website,” Larijani stated without directly naming Rouhani. “But when you speak among journalists, you hail freedom of the press.” In this vein, Rouhani’s comments on freedom of the press, according to Larijani, are tantamount to “defamation of the judiciary” and an “insult.”