“Musavat” Party activist Badalov arrested by political motives, his party colleagues suggest

Zabit Badalov, an activist of the opposition “Musavat” Party, was arrested for eight days on the charge of failing to pay a bank debt. The arrest of Zabit Badalov is illegal, and before he was summoned to court, the law enforcement bodies had demanded from him to stop his political activities, party colleagues of Zabit Badalov say.

“In 2014, while serving in the Ministry of Defence, he took a loan for 3000 manats (about 1764 US dollars). He paid 2000 manats (about 1176 US dollars), but failed to pay the rest because of his dismissal and lack of income. In 2017, the court obliged Zabit Badalov to pay his debt,” said Mustafa Gadjibeili, the chief of the press service for the “Musavat” Party.

According to Mustafa Gadjibeili, in 2018, the court ordered the Azerbaijani Ministry of Defence (MoD) to pay compensation to Zabit Badalov in the amount of 15,000 manats (8824 US dollars). “He was going to use those funds to repay the rest of the debt, but has not yet received the funds from the Ministry of Defence,” the chief of the press service for the “Musavat” Party explained.

He added that Zabit Badalov was summoned to the police in connection with his political activities. “Zabit Badalov is one of the most active members of our party in the region. In 2020, he ran for a seat in the parliament,” Mustafa Gadjibeili said.

Advocate Akram Gasanov notes that a person cannot be arrested because of a debt if he or she is unable to pay it for “good reasons.”

The “Caucasian Knot” has also reported that Razi Alyshov, a member of the Ganja city branch of the Popular Front Party of Azerbaijan (PFPA), was arrested on the charge of drug trafficking. Razi Alyshov’s party colleagues believe that the activist is being persecuted for political reasons.