2 - Expansion (February 11–November 6, 1979)

Summary

Chapter 2 “Expansion ( February 11–November 6, 1979)” examines how RJ safeguarded its existence, promoted its expansion, and undermined its opponents through its interactions with government officials and institutions. In an effort to gain and maximize recognition, responsibilities, and resources from the state, RJ exploited its dual structure by lobbying the Islamic Republican Parry (IRP) and the revolutionary council (shūrā-i inqilābī), and circumvented the center-left and the bureaucracy – which sought to restrict the organization’s expansion for ideological and political reasons. To the disapproval of Prime Minister Mehdi Bazargan (1907–97) and the center-left, RJ members influenced Khomeini and the IRP to endorse RJ’s official establishment as a revolutionary organization and a parallel institution to the bureaucracy between June 16 and 17, 1979. RJ further undermined and marginalized the center-left by manipulating and exacerbating its political and ideological differences with the IRP, culminating in Bazargan’s resignation, President Abolhassan Banisadr’s (b. 1933) impeachment, and the IRP’s control of the state.