Kazem Shariatmadari

Grand Ayatollah Kazem Shariatmadari was one of Iran's most senior Shia clerics and a major religious authority. He initially supported the 1979 revolution but became one of the most prominent critics of Ruhollah Khomeini's doctrine of Velayat-e Faqih (Guardianship of the Islamic Jurist). He advocated for a more democratic interpretation of Islamic governance. In 1982, he was implicated in an alleged coup plot involving Sadegh Ghotbzadeh and was stripped of his Grand Ayatollah title — an unprecedented act in Shia history. He was placed under house arrest and died on 3 April 1986.