Ali Akbar Nategh Noori, a conservative veteran politician of the Islamic Republic broke his silence about the reason behind his resignation as the head of the Supreme Leader’s office of inspections.

Mr. Nategh Noori had resigned from his post right before the May 19 presidential election and had endorsed the incumbent, president Hassan Rouhani.

In an interview with a local website, Mr. Nategh Noori explained that he could not remain “indifferent” toward “political realities” and “developments in Iranian society”, and decided to resign.

He added that officials who work at the Supreme Leader’s administration should not have political activities, which could potentially hurt the status of the Leader’s office. Nategh Noori clarified that his resignation was meant to dispel any impression that someone from the Supreme Leader’s office was taking political sides.

Nategh Noori was himself a former presidential candidate who lost the election to Mohammad Khatami in 1997. He also served as parliament speaker from 1992-2000. Since then, he has not held any elected office or executive post.

The government controlled news agency, IRNA, which had reported Nategh Noori’s resignation, had quoted a “well-informed” source as saying that the decision was taken when Nategh Noori decided to come to president Rouhani’s defense in the election campaign.

During the campaign the veteran political figure appeared at several gatherings and voiced his support for the re-election of the incumbent.

In his interview, Mr. Nategh Noori also mentions the economy and how important it is for the government to try to revive growth by securing investments.