DUSHANBE, June 8, 2011, Asia-Plus — Consideration of a lawsuit filed by local authorities of Asht district, Sughd province against the organization of the Islamic Revival Party (IRP) for Asht district has been postponed several times because of non-appearance of plaintiff, the IRP deputy head Mahmadali Hoit said in an interview with Asia-Plus.
According to him, the district authorities want to take back the building which now places IRP’s office. “Under an agreement reached with local authorities, the building was handed over to the IRP more than five years ago and we have all necessary documents,” Hoit said.
The other hearing concerns the lawsuit filed against two IRP activists in Asht, who are accused of propagating Islamic weddings. “This hearing is also delayed by the Asht court unfoundedly,” the IRP representative noted.
“Our activists – Mirzo Hojimatov and Sobit Madaliyev – and several local residents are accused of breaching several articles of the Law on Freedom of Conscience and Religious Associations (Law on Religion) and the Law on Observing National Traditions and Rituals,” Hoit said.
It is to be noted that this is not the first time that the Asht authorities file lawsuit against IRP supporters over Islamic weddings. We will recall that in early May, the IRP member Husniddin Sharofiddinov was sentenced to five days in jail for refusing to give authorities a video of an Islamic wedding. He was detained on May 6 for ignoring a police order to turn over the video. The police reportedly asked Sharofiddinov to lend them the video of the wedding but he refused and cursed police officers.
