Three relatives of Muhiddin Kabiri, leader of the banned Islamic Revival Party of Tajikistan (IRPT), have been released from jail after serving one year for not reporting a crime.
“Muhiddin Kabiri’s cousin Jamshed Narzulloyev, his brother-in-law (his wife’s brother) Mahmadali Rahmatulloyev and his wife’s relative Hikmatullo Sayfov have been released from jail after serving a one-year term,” a source close to persons released from jail told Asia-Plus in an interview.
Jamshed Narzulloyev, Rahmatulloyev, and Sayfov were detained by security officers in late September last year on suspicion of collaborating with Kabiri’s son. IRPT leader reportedly tried to hand over money to the former deputy defense minister Abduhalim Nazarzoda through his son.
The three were charged with not reporting a crime and sentenced to one year in prison each.
Tajikistan’s Supreme Court banned the Islamic Revival Party of Tajikistan as terrorist group on September 29 last year on the basis of a suit filed by the Prosecutor-General’s Office. The Supreme Court ruled that the IRPT should be included on a blacklist of extremist and terrorist organizations. The verdict forces the closure of the IRPT's official newspaper Najot and bans the distribution of any video, audio, or printed materials related to the party's activities.
The Supreme Court on June 2 this year sentenced the deputy IRPT heads Saidumar Husaini and Mahmadali Hayit to life imprisonment. Eleven other IRPT activists were sentenced to jail terms ranging from 14 to 28 years.
Zarafo Rahmoni, the party’s lawyer and the only woman in the high-profile trial, was sentenced to two years in prison. She was released on September 5 this year as being pardoned outright.
They were arrested on September 16 and 17 last year after completion of the operation against the armed group of Abduhalim Nazarzoda.
In a statement released on September 17, the Prosecutor-General’s Office noted that they are suspected of abetting party leader Kabiri’s plot, saying that they had been arrested “to prevent more terrorist attacks in the country.”
Party leader Muhiddin Kabiri, who now lives in exile, has rejected the accusations.
