Turkey’s justice minister says as many as 1,845 cases have been opened against people accused of insulting President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan since he came to office in 2014.

Erdoğan has been accused of aggressively using a previously seldom-used law that bars insults to the president, as a way to muffle dissent. Those who have gone on trial include celebrities, journalists and even schoolchildren.

Critics say Erdoğan, who has been accused of increasingly authoritarian behaviour, even considers strong criticism as insults.

Responding to questions in parliament on Monday, Bekir Bozdag said his ministry had allowed 1,845 cases on charges of insulting Erdoğan to go ahead.

He defended the prosecutions, saying: “I am unable to read the insults levelled at our president. I start to blush.”