Noureddin Alamouti ( fa, نورالدین الموتی) (1901–1965) was an Iranian judge and politician. He served as the justice minister under the cabinet of

Ali Amini Ali Amini ( fa, علی امینی; 12 September 1905–12 December 1992) was an Iranian politician who was the Prime Minister of Iran from 1961 to 1962. He held several cabinet portfolios during the 1950s, and served as a member of parliame ...

, during which he was noted for forming a powerful

anti-corruption Anti-corruption (or anticorruption) comprises activities that oppose or inhibit corruption. Just as corruption takes many forms, anti-corruption efforts vary in scope and in strategy. A general distinction between preventive and reactive meas ...

division that led to "the last serious attempt to realize the rule of law" in Pahlavi dynasty.

Early life

He came from the rural district of Alamut. In 1919, he joined the Democrat Party and was imprisoned in 1923 for "agitating among the local peasantry". Alamouti was employed at the justice ministry during rule of

Reza Shah , , spouse = Maryam Savadkoohi Tadj ol-Molouk Ayromlu (queen consort) Turan Amirsoleimani Esmat Dowlatshahi , issue = Princess Hamdamsaltaneh Princess Shams Mohammad Reza Shah Princess Ashraf Prince Ali Reza Prince Gholam Reza P ...

Political career

One of the members of the " group of fifty-three", he was jailed in 1938. He later joined the

Tudeh Party of Iran The Tudeh Party of Iran ( fa-at, حزب تودۀ ایران, Ḥezb-e Tūde-ye Īrān, lit=Party of the Masses of Iran) is an Iranian communist party. Formed in 1941, with Soleiman Mirza Eskandari as its head, it had considerable influence in i ...

immediately after its establishment in 1941 and was elected to its provisional central committee. At the party's first congress in 1944, he was elected to the central committee and served as the party's general-secretary, a position he shared with Mohammad Bahrami and

Iraj Eskandari Iraj Eskandari ( fa, ایرج اسکندری; 1907–1985) was an Iranian communist politician. A Qajar prince, Eskandari received French education.Behrooz, Maziar. Rebels with a Cause: The Failure of the Left in Iran'. London: I.B. Tauris, 2000. ...

. He was listed by Tudeh for a

Tehran Tehran (; fa, تهران ) is the largest city in Tehran Province and the capital of Iran. With a population of around 9 million in the city and around 16 million in the larger metropolitan area of Greater Tehran, Tehran is the most popul ...

seat in Iranian legislative election, 1943–1944, but was defeated. In 1946, Alamouti was excluded from the central committee because he was "not full-fledged Marxist". He left the party in 1947 and joined the entourage of

Ahmad Qavam Ahmad Qavam (2 January 1873 – 23 July 1955; fa, احمد قوام), also known as Qavam os-Saltaneh ( fa, قوام السلطنه), was a politician who served as Prime Minister of Iran five times. Early life Qavam was born in 1873 to a p ...

. Alamouti was allegedly detested by Mohammad Reza Shah.

Ministry

Alamouti was appointed as the justice minister in 1961 and served in the capacity until July 1962. He launched a campaign to fight corruption and

abuse of power Abuse is the improper usage or treatment of a thing, often to unfairly or improperly gain benefit. Abuse can come in many forms, such as: physical or verbal maltreatment, injury, assault, violation, rape, unjust practices, crimes, or other t ...

among the ruling elite that led to jailing several high-ranking officials, including

police The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and th ...

chief general Alavi-Moghadam (charged with bribetaking), military prosecutor Hossein Azmoudeh and former plan and budget head Abolhassan Ebtehaj (charged with $69 million embezzlement). He appointed Ahmad Sadr Haj Seyyed Javadi as prosecutor of

, who joined him in the

legal activism. Among the military officers prosecuted during the period, were general Kia, Zarghami, Daftari, Khazaei and Nevissi. After he left office following resignation of Ali Amini, all detainees were released and the charges were dropped, however the effects of the activism were not forgotten. Three years later, some 100 judges were dismissed.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Alamouti, Noureddin 1901 births 1965 deaths 20th-century Iranian politicians 20th-century Iranian judges Iranian anti-corruption activists Democrat Party (Persia) politicians Central Committee of the Tudeh Party of Iran members Democrat Party of Iran politicians Co-General-Secretaries of the Tudeh Party of Iran Ministers of Justice of Iran