The property of the Khural is to be auctioned off, reported Malahat Zeynalova, wife of imprisoned editor-in-chief of Khural Avaz Zeynalli, to IRFS on May 17th.
The Specialized Property Auctioning Center LLC will auction off the technical equipment of Khural, based on order letter #17/69 from Narimanov District Executive Department, dated February 21, 2012. The starting price for the property is 1430 AZN. The first auction, scheduled for April 18, 2012, was postponed due to the lack of an orderer. The starting price has been set at 1215 AZN.
Zeynalli’s lawyer has sent new appeals to the Justice Ministry’s Penitentiary Service head Madat Guliyev, ombudswoman Elmira Suleymanova, and to other local and international human rights defenders, regarding the violation of Avaz Zeynalli’s rights in prison.
Khural newspaper was published weekly from 2002 October, and daily from September 20th 2011. The property of the newspaper was confiscated on October 19th, following its failure to pay a total of 19,000 AZN in court-issued fines to the Presidential Administration Head Ramiz Mehdiyev, Mass Media State Support Fund Executive Director Vugar Safarli, and others. The newspaper had to stop operating on October 2nd, when printing houses refused to print it. Zeynalli, the editor-in-chief of Khural, was arrested following a lawsuit brought by MP Gular Ahmadova on October 28th. The Anti-Corruption Office charged him under Article 311.3.3 (taking a large bribe) and Article 311.3.4 (taking a bribe via the application of threat), and Nasimi District Court sentenced him to 3 months of pre-trial detention. On January 17th 2012 his prison term was extended by three months.