Tofiq Yaqublu’s Supreme Court Hearing Postponed Again

Tofiq Yaqublu

Tofiq Yaqublu, a well-known member of the National Council and the Musavat Party, had his case heard in the Supreme Court on December 19. Judge Ilgar Gilijov presided over the session, which was meant to review the case of the opposition figure who has been jailed many times over the last few decades. The judge mentioned that Supreme Court sessions are usually short but allowed Yaqublu to speak directly to the court because of the case's importance.

Yaqublu spoke to the court, asking for a full acquittal and for all charges against him to be dropped. He said that his political life has been hard on him personally. He noted that he has been arrested repeatedly since 1993 and questioned how long someone could be imprisoned so often. His daughter, Nigar Hazi, shared these details and emphasized her father's request for after years of legal battles.

The court chose to postpone the trial because Yaqublu presented new information about supposed legal violations that were not in the investigation materials. Judge Gilijov said that these new points needed to be examined and added to the case file before a decision could be made. The court then began thinking about the case and postponed the trial to a later date.

The state prosecutor, whose name was not given, asked that the defense’s motions be denied, which added to the tension in the courtroom. This recent delay comes after a previous postponement of a hearing on November 6, adding to the many procedural delays in Yaqublu's legal situation.

Tofiq Yaqublu’s present legal problems started with his arrest in December 2023, which resulted in a nine-year prison sentence from the Baku Grave Crimes Court on March 10, 2025. He was convicted of fraud involving large damages and using false documents. Yaqublu did a 40-day hunger strike from April 1 to May 10, 2025, to protest these charges, showing how strongly he disagreed with the judicial system's decision.