CEDH · CASELAW;COMMUNICATEDCASES;ENG — 24 mars 2026

.s800EAC49 { font-size:12pt } .s379BC09C { margin-top:36pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-align:right } .sBB9EE52A { font-family:Arial } .s32563E28 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt } .s5E1364CA { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:12pt; text-align:center; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid; font-size:14pt } .s339D85E6 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:14pt; text-align:center; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid } .s665E407E { margin-top:66pt; margin-bottom:14pt; text-align:center; page-break-inside:avoid; page-break-after:avoid } .s29100277 { font-family:Arial; font-weight:bold } .s10950C61 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-indent:14.2pt; text-align:justify } .sA36B60A1 { font-family:Arial; font-style:italic } .sE208486F { font-family:Arial; color:#ff0000 } .s5FFF0A75 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; font-size:7pt } .s75A32C27 { border-collapse:collapse } .s72832412 { border:0.75pt solid #838383; padding:1.4pt 5.03pt; vertical-align:top; background-color:#dfdfdf } .s2EF62ED2 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; font-size:12pt } .sE1A7A04C { font-family:Arial; font-weight:bold; color:#424242 } .sD8909BE6 { border:0.75pt solid #838383; padding:1.4pt 5.03pt; vertical-align:top } .s7ED160F0 { text-decoration:none } .s1EDF3BA6 { font-family:Arial; font-size:8pt; font-weight:bold; vertical-align:super; color:#0069d6 } .sA99A98F0 { font-family:Arial; font-size:8pt; font-weight:bold; vertical-align:super; color:#000000 } .sF6A12959 { width:33%; height:1px; text-align:left } .s85226119 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-align:justify; font-size:10pt } .s653E6C45 { font-family:Arial; font-size:6.67pt; vertical-align:super; color:#0069d6 } Published on 13 April 2026   THIRD SECTION Application no. 4168/21 Ayaz MAHARRAMOV against Azerbaijan and 7 other applications (see list appended) communicated on 24 March 2026 SUBJECT MATTER OF THE CASE The applications primarily concern the alleged unlawfulness of the applicants’ pre-trial detention or the alleged unfairness of criminal proceedings against them. At the material time the applicants (except for applicant Mr T. Valiyev) were active members and functionaries of one of the major opposition parties, the Popular Front Party of Azerbaijan ( Azərbaycan Xalq Cəbhəsi Partiyası – “the PFPA”). Applicants Mr A. Maharramov, Mr B. Imanov, Mr   F.   Gahramanli and Mr M. Ibrahim were members of the PFPA’s board. Applicant Mr M. Ibrahim was also an advisor to the chairman of the party. On 14 July 2020 a demonstration was held in Baku in front of the Parliament, following the border clashes between Armenia and Azerbaijan which had occurred the same month in the Tovuz district of Azerbaijan and had caused death of several high-ranking military servicemen. At night, a group of demonstration participants forcefully entered the building of the Parliament. The demonstration was dispersed by the police with the use of pepper gas and water cannons among other means. The police arrested a number of participants. According to official records, several police officers were injured, and damage was caused to public and private property, including damage to the interior of the building of the Parliament and to a police car. Applicants Mr F. Abadov and Mr T. Valiyev were among those who had participated in the demonstration. Applicants Mr A. Maharramov, Mr   B.   Imanov, Mr F. Gahramanli and Mr M. Ibrahim did not participate in the demonstration and during the events they were either at home or elsewhere in the city. On 15 July 2020, at a meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers, the President of the State made a public speech in which he mentioned the events of 14 July 2020 and the PFPA. On the same day the PFPA made a public statement that they were not the organisers of the demonstration, and that the President had made unfounded accusations against them. On various dates in July 2020 the applicants were arrested. The applicants were charged with the criminal offences under Article   127.2.1 (intentional infliction of less serious ( az ağır ) bodily injury committed against a person in connection with the performance of his/her official duties or public duty), Article 186.2.1 (intentional destruction or damage of property by causing damage in substantial amount), Article   186.2.2 (intentional destruction or damage of property committed by burning, explosion or by other generally dangerous means, or when it resulted in serious consequences), Article 233 (organising or actively participating in actions that breach public order) and Article 315 (resistance or violence against a representative of the State authority) of the Criminal Code. All the charges were taken in conjunction with Article 34.2 of the Criminal Code, which meant that the applicants were accused of committing the crimes as a group of accomplices acting in concert, with premeditation ( qabaqcadan əlbir olan bir qrup şəxs ). The charges against applicants Mr A. Maharramov, Mr B. Imanov, Mr F. Gahramanli and Mr M. Ibrahim were additionally taken in conjunction with Article 32.3 of the Criminal Code, which meant that these applicants were accused of organising or directing the commission of the crimes in question. On various dates in July 2020 the Nasimi District Court ordered the applicants’ pre-trial detention. Appeals against those decisions were unsuccessful. Later, applicants Mr B. Imanov, Mr F. Gahramanli and Mr M. Ibrahim lodged requests with the Nasimi District Court to substitute their detention by house arrest (applicant Mr B. Imanov also requested release on bail ( girov )). These requests were not granted. On 17 November 2020, upon the request by the prosecution, the Sabail District Court changed the pre-trial detention with house arrest. By a judgment of 14 June 2021 of the Sabail District Court, all applicants (and six other defendants) were convicted as charged. The applicants were sentenced to various terms of imprisonment. The sentences were applied conditionally, with application of various probationary periods. By a judgment of 27 August 2021 of the Baku Court of Appeal, the applicants’ conviction was upheld (the appellate court proceedings were held without “judicial investigation”). By decisions of 26 April 2022 (concerning applicants Mr A. Maharramov, Mr B. Imanov and Mr M. Ibrahim) and 5 October 2022 (concerning applicants Mr F. Gahramanli, Mr F. Abadov and Mr T. Valiyev), the Supreme Court upheld the appellate court’s judgment. Before the Court, applicants Mr A. Maharramov, Mr B. Imanov and Mr   M.   Ibrahim (in applications nos. 4168/21, 4256/21 and 8709/21 respectively) complain under Article 5 § 1 of the Convention that there was no reasonable suspicion that they had committed any criminal offence. Applicant Mr M. Ibrahim (in application no. 8709/21) also complains that he was held under undocumented detention from 26 to 27 July 2020. Applicants Mr A. Maharramov, Mr B. Imanov, Mr F. Gahramanli and Mr   M. Ibrahim (in applications nos. 4168/21, 4256/21, 4419/21 and 8709/21 respectively) complain under Article 5 § 3 of the Convention that the domestic courts failed to provide relevant and sufficient reasons for their continued pre-trial detentions. Applicants Mr A. Maharramov, Mr B. Imanov and Mr M. Ibrahim (in applications nos. 4168/21, 4256/21 and 8709/21 respectively) complain under Article 5 § 4 of the Convention that they were not afforded an effective judicial review of the lawfulness of their detentions. In applications nos. 57392/22, 9245/23, 13383/23 and 15617/23, all six applicants complain that their convictions were based on false and unlawful evidence, and that the criminal proceedings against them were in breach of various fair-trial guarantees (including the right to a reasoned decision and the right to adequate opportunity to contest evidence). These complaints – which fall under Article 6 § 1 of the Convention – are raised with reference to Article 6 § 1 or Article 6 § 3 of the Convention. Applicants Mr A. Maharramov, Mr B. Imanov, Mr F. Gahramanli, Mr   M.   Ibrahim and Mr F. Abadov (in applications nos. 4168/21, 4256/21, 8709/21, 57392/22, 9245/23, 13383/23 and 15617/23) complain that their arrests and convictions were politically motivated and were a part of unlawful measures to pressure the PFPA, and that the real reason for the criminal proceedings was their activity in the PFPA, including their publicly expressed views. Applicants Mr A. Maharramov, Mr B. Imanov, Mr M. Ibrahim and Mr   F. Abadov refer in this regard also to a public speech made by the President of the State on 15 July 2020: they allege that in that speech the PFPA had been accused of organising the unlawful actions during the demonstration of 14 July 2020, and that the criminal proceedings against the applicants had been instituted as a consequence of or in line with that speech. These complaints – which fall under Article 18 of the Convention taken in conjunction with Article 11 – are raised with reference to Article 6 § 2, Articles 10, 11, 14 and/or 18 of the Convention. QUESTIONS TO THE PARTIES Questions concerning applications nos. 4168/21, 4256/21, 4419/21 and 8709/21:   1.     Were the applicants in applications nos. 4168/21, 4256/21 and 8709/21 deprived of their liberty in breach of Article 5 § 1 of the Convention? In particular: (i) Was the pre-trial detention of the applicants in applications nos.   4168/21, 4256/21 and 8709/21 compatible with Article 5 § 1 (c) in terms of being justified and based on a reasonable suspicion? (ii) In application no. 8709/21, was the applicant’s detention between 26 and 27 July 2020 in compliance with domestic procedural rules?   2.     Did the domestic courts give sufficient and relevant reasons for the continued detention of the applicants in applications nos. 4168/21, 4256/21, 4419/21 and 8709/21, as required by Article 5 § 3 of the Convention?   3.     Did the applicants in applications nos. 4168/21, 4256/21 and 8709/21 have at their disposal an effective procedure by which they could challenge the lawfulness of their detention, as required by Article 5 § 4 of the Convention?   Questions concerning applications nos. 57392/22, 9245/23, 13383/23 and 15617/23:   4.     Did the applicants have a fair hearing in the determination of the criminal charges against them, in accordance with Article 6 § 1 of the Convention? In particular, was the applicants’ right to a reasoned decision and the principles of equality of arms and adversarial proceedings respected? Were the applicants afforded an adequate opportunity to contest the evidence against them, and to adduce evidence in support of their line of defence and to have such evidence assessed by the court?   Questions concerning applications nos. 4168/21, 4256/21, 8709/21, 57392/22, 9245/23, 13383/23 and 15617/23 (in application no. 15617/23 only in part concerning applicant Mr F. Gahramanli):   5.     Has there been a breach of Article 18 taken in conjunction with Article   11 of the Convention? Were the restrictions imposed by the State on the applicants, purportedly for a legitimate aim pursuant to Article 11 of the Convention, applied for a purpose other than those envisaged by that provision, contrary to Article 18 of the Convention?   The parties are requested to provide documentary evidence in support of their replies and submissions, including copies of the judgments and decisions of the domestic courts, transcripts of the court hearings and the applicants’ appeals and requests.     APPENDIX No. Application no. Case name Lodged on Applicant Year of Birth Place of Residence Nationality Represented by 1. 4168/21 Maharramov v.   Azerbaijan 23/12/2020 Ayaz Habib oglu MAHARRAMOV 1982 Baku Azerbaijani Fariz Mubariz oglu NAMAZLI 2. 4256/21 Imanov v.   Azerbaijan 18/12/2020 Bakhtiyar Badal oglu IMANOV 1979 Baku Azerbaijani Javad Yusif oglu JAVADOV 3. 4419/21 Gahramanli v.   Azerbaijan 29/12/2020 Fuad Ali oglu GAHRAMANLI 1975 Absheron Azerbaijani Nemat Aga oglu KARIMLI 4. 8709/21 Ibrahim v.   Azerbaijan 12/01/2021 Mammad Aziz oglu IBRAHIM 1966 Baku Azerbaijani Asabali Gurban oglu MUSTAFAYEV   Ruslan Asabali oglu MUSTAFAZADE 5. 57392/22 Maharramov and Imanov v.   Azerbaijan 06/12/2022 Ayaz Habib oglu MAHARRAMOV [1] 1982 Baku Azerbaijani Bakhtiyar Badal oglu IMANOV [2] 1979 Baku Azerbaijani Fariz Mubariz oglu NAMAZLI 6. 9245/23 Ibrahim v.   Azerbaijan 17/08/2022 Mammad Aziz oglu IBRAHIM [3] 1966 Baku Azerbaijani Asabali Gurban oglu MUSTAFAYEV   Ruslan Asabali oglu MUSTAFAZADE 7. 13383/23 Abadov v.   Azerbaijan 04/03/2023 Farid Matlab oglu ABADOV 1997 Baku Azerbaijani Asabali Gurban oglu MUSTAFAYEV   Ruslan Asabali oglu MUSTAFAZADE 8. 15617/23 Gahramanli and Valiyev v.   Azerbaijan 16/03/2023 Fuad Ali oglu GAHRAMANLI [4] 1975 Absheron Azerbaijani Tural Famil oglu VALIYEV 1981 Baku Azerbaijani Nemat Aga oglu KARIMLI   Fakhraddin Mahaddin oglu MEHDIYEV     [1] The same applicant as in application no. 4168/21. [2] The same applicant as in application no. 4256/21. [3] The same applicant as in application no. 8709/21. [4] The same applicant as in application no. 4419/21.