New researches in Islamic humanities studies

New researches in Islamic humanities studies

The Conflicting Role of Internal and External Supervision in the Accountability of Political Power in the Islamic Republic of Iran

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
Musa Mir 1
Majid Golparvar 2
Morteza Babaei Sakhmers 2
1 PhD student. Department of Political Science (Political Thought), Baft Branch, Islamic Azad University, Baft, Iran
2 Assistant Professor, Department of Political Science. Baft Branch, Islamic Azad University, Baft, Iran
10.22034/api.2026.2085901.1671
Abstract
Objective: One of the fundamental challenges in the political system of the Islamic Republic of Iran is the conflict and inconsistency between the two levels of internal oversight and external oversight in the accountability mechanism of political power. Internal oversight is based on piety, moral conscience, and a sense of individual responsibility before God, while external oversight is based on legal institutions, formal rules, and institutional and social oversight mechanisms. The main issue of the research is what consequences the prioritization and dominance of each of these two levels of oversight has for the quality of political accountability.
Research Method: The present research was conducted using a descriptive-analytical method and using content analysis of official documents and intellectual texts in the period from 1993 to 2003.
Findings: It shows that the dominance of internal oversight without institutional support leads to religious pretense, covert corruption, and reduced performance measurability; in contrast, the dominance of external oversight without strengthening moral conscience leads to the formalization of rules, soulless bureaucracy, and reduced motivation for responsibility. Accordingly, sustainable accountability in a religious political system requires the creation of a strategic balance and synergy between individual piety and legal and institutional mechanisms.
Conclusion: The analysis conducted in this article shows that the main issue of the oversight system in the Islamic Republic of Iran is not “absolute reliance on internal or external oversight,” but rather how to prioritize one of the two over the other and its structural consequences.In fact, both levels of oversight—internal and external—exist simultaneously in the governance structure; but the shifting weight of each has different effects on political accountability

Graphical Abstract

The Conflicting Role of Internal and External Supervision in the Accountability of Political Power in the Islamic Republic of Iran
Keywords
Internal oversight
external oversight
political accountability
non-conformity
Islamic Republic of Iran
Subjects
Quran
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New researches in Islamic humanities studies
Volume 5, Issue 9
Spring 2026
Pages 1-21