An unlikely hero cheers many in Iran

BEIRUT, Lebanon - An unassuming college math student has become an unlikely hero to many in Iran for daring to criticize the country's most powerful man to his face.

Mahmoud Vahidnia has received an outpouring of support from government opponents for the challenge - unprecedented in a country where insulting supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is a crime punishable by prison.

Perhaps most surprising, the math whiz - a gold medalist at the country's National Math Olympics two years ago - so far has suffered no repercussions from the confrontation at a question-and-answer session between Khamenei and students at Tehran's Sharif Technical University.

Iran's clerical leadership is touting the incident as a sign of its tolerance - so much so that some Iranians at first believed the exchange was staged, though opposition commentators now are convinced it was not.

Details of the encounter were reported by the state news agency IRNA and in a pro-government newspaper, Keyhan, which gave its account with the headline "The revolutionary leader's fatherly response to critical youth."

Still some of those in attendance at the Oct. 28 forum say Khamenei appeared taken aback by the questioning and left the meeting early, according to commentary posted on pro-reform Web sites.

The session began with a speech in which Khamenei told the students the "biggest crime" was to question the result of the June 12 presidential election that returned hard-liner Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to power amid allegations of fraud.

Vahidnia then raised his hand and for 20 minutes criticized the Iranian leader over the bloody crackdown on postelection protests.

In excerpts broadcast on state TV, the thin, bespectacled Vahidnia was shown standing behind a lectern, gesturing at times.

"I don't know why in this country it's not allowed to make any kind of criticism of you," said the student, wearing a long-sleeved blue polo shirt and appearing calm.

"In the past three to five years that I have been reading newspapers, I have seen no criticism of you, not even by the Assembly of Experts, whose duty is to criticize and supervise the performance of the leader," he said, referring to the clerical body that chooses the supreme leader.

Khamenei countered: "We welcome criticism. We never said not to criticize us. . . . There's plenty of criticism that I receive," according to accounts in state media and on opposition Web sites.

The supreme leader stands at the top of the hierarchy of Iran's clerical rulers.

The incident has propelled the soft-spoken man in his early 20s to national prominence and inspired widespread support on the Web.

The night of the encounter, fellow students gathered, shouting, "God is great!" and "Death to the dictator!" in support of their colleague, according to video footage posted on pro-reform Web sites.

"Do you think radio and television have portrayed the recent events accurately or broadcast a caricature-type image of them?" he asked.

The supreme leader said he had his own criticisms of state media, saying they had failed to give enough coverage to the government's "positive achievements."