As a scheduled election speech by presidential candidate Mehdi Karroubi is canceled in a Tehran university, students break in and escort the candidate to the podium in defiance.

Karroubi, who was scheduled to deliver a speech with his vice-president pick Gholam-Hossein Karbaschi at Tehran's Amirkabir University of Technology on Saturday, was kept behind the gates by the university's security guards.

However, the Reformist contender's supporters holding pro-Karroubi banners stormed the gates and escorted him to the podium.

During Karroubi's speech, university officials described the event as illegal without an official permit.

"Hojjatoleslam Karroubi has entered the university without a permit. He was refused entry by the university but his supporters and some of the students opened the gates," Zahra Bakhtiari head of the university's public relations told Mehr News Agency on Saturday.

She said officials would wait for Karroubi to finish his speech to decide on the issue.

The Karroubi camp says the event had been confirmed to take place on Saturday. University officials, however, say the speech was re-scheduled for the coming Wednesday.

... Payvand News - 05/30/09 ... --