ANKARA, Oct 24 (Reuters) - A Turkish court is expected

to announce a verdict on Friday that could lead to the removal

of the main opposition party leader Ozgur Ozel, in a case seen

as a test of the country's shaky balance between democracy and

autocracy.

If the court annuls the outcome of proceedings in a 2023

annual congress of the Republican People's Party (CHP), that

would mean the ouster of Ozel, 51, its combative leader.

Ozel has risen to prominence since the March detention of

Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, his party's presidential

candidate and the main political rival of President Tayyip

Erdogan.

The centrist CHP, which denies the charges against it, is

level with Erdogan's Islamic-rooted, conservative AK party (AKP)

in most polls.

If the court cancels the congress and ousts Ozel, it could

name a trustee to run the party or reinstate former chairman

Kemal Kilicdaroglu, whom Erdogan defeated in 2023 elections but

has since lost much trust within the CHP.

It could also reject the case, brought by a CHP member, or

delay a ruling again.

The CHP sought to shield Ozel from any court ruling last

month when it re-elected him leader in an extraordinary party

congress.

Hundreds of CHP members have also been jailed pending trial

in a separate year-long crackdown that government critics call

politicised and anti-democratic. The government rejects this,

saying the judiciary is independent.