The Supreme Court of Azerbaijan has rejected the appeal of Tofig Yagublu, a member of the National Council of Democratic Forces and the Musavat Party.
Yagublu, who had been given a suspended sentence, asked to leave for Georgia in the summer of 2021 to say goodbye to his dying mother. While the case was pending in the Surakhani court, the woman passed away. Yagublu then asked to be allowed to travel to attend the funeral.
However, he was refused. Yagublu then lodged a complaint with the Baku Court of Appeal, which also rejected the request. The Supreme Court, after considering the appeal, also upheld the said decision.
“There is no court in this country. Just, there is a group that serves one family, and the judges are slaves of this system,” Yagublu said in court.
Lawyer Agyl Laij asked the court to, at least, allow Yagublu to visit his mother’s grave. According to him, Yagublu will appeal to the ECHR.
*Yagublu was arrested in March 2020 on false charges of hooliganism.
On September 3, 2020, the Nizami court sentenced him to 4 years and 3 months of imprisonment. After a long hunger strike, the Baku Court of Appeals changed his preventive measure to house arrest on September 18. On July 15, the Baku Court of Appeals changed his imprisonment to a suspended sentence.