Republican People's Party (CHP) presidential candidate Muharrem Ince met with the Peoples' Democratic Party's (HDP) charismatic former leader Selahattin Demirtas, who is also standing for the presidency in the June 24 elections, the HDP said.

The meeting took place at the prison in the Edirne region of northwest Turkey where Demirtas is being held.

The HDP named Demirtas as its presidential candidate even though he is currently behind bars and standing trial in several cases on charges including links to a terror group, Hurriyet daily reported.

Turkish media reports said the visit took place under tight security, with Ince walking into the prison without making any statement.

The CHP sees itself as the guardian of Turkey's secular and national traditions and has not always had easy relations with the HDP. The visit marked the first time a senior CHP figure had met Demirtas in prison.

Demirtas hailed the visit as "important and meaningful," in a written message published by the HDP after the talks.

Demirtas said the visit highlighted "injustices" engulfing both his party -- several of whose MPs are in jail for alleged links to Kurdish militants -- and also the country which is currently ruled under state of emergency laws since the 2016 failed coup.

"Me and my fellow colleagues are being held as political hostages but unfortunately the outside is not much different from a semi open-prison," he said.

But he hoped despite the "unfair race" -- where all the state's resources would be mobilized for Erdogan -- the elections would open the way for democracy, freedom and peace.

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