27 February 2004	Friday	06 Muharram 1425

TEHRAN, Feb 26: Dozens of angry Iranian reformist parliamentarians have demanded that President Mohammad Khatami appear before them to explain why he let last week's elections go ahead even though 2,500 of his supporters were barred from standing.

Many reformers and ordinary Iranians feel let down by Khatami, who promised freedom of speech and rule of law, but failed to stand up to powerful hardliners once they blocked him.

Conservatives won control of parliament in Friday's polls, leaving Khatami increasingly isolated, heading a cabinet that achieved little even when it had a majority in the assembly.

"We are preparing to summon Khatami to parliament to explain his efforts for a fair election, what he did to ensure there was a free and fair election and why his government held an election which they believed was neither free nor fair," outgoing reformist deputy Reza Yousefian said.

Pro-reform candidates only won 40 seats in the 290-seat assembly, compared to conservatives' 154, according to Interior Ministry official results released on Thursday.

There are currently around 190 reformists in parliament. Independents won 30 seats, five seats are reserved for religious minorities and 60 seats are to be recontested as candidates did not get the minimum 25 per cent of votes. -Reuters