Political discord has intensified over the government's decision not to appeal a ruling in the Daejang-dong trial, which centered on a development project led by Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, when President Lee Jae Myung was mayor.

The main opposition People Power Party (PPP) claimed that Lee was behind the state's decision to forgo an appeal, which prevented the prosecution from seeking an additional 740 billion won, or around 509 million U.S. dollars, linked to the breach-of-trust case.

The party called for a special counsel probe and a parliamentary investigation, characterizing the decision not to appeal as the nation's worst case of intervention in an investigation and trial, as well as an abuse of authority warranting Lee's impeachment.

The ruling Democratic Party (DP), on the other hand, accused prosecutors who had protested the decision of engaging in a "coup-like mutiny" and said it was only natural that the state had refrained from filing a reflexive appeal.

The DP claimed that Lee's indictment in the now-suspended trial had been concocted and said it would resort to all available means, including a parliamentary probe and a special counsel investigation, to reveal the truth.