Trial of Imprisoned Lawyer Zabil Gahramanov to Begin in Ganja

The trial of imprisoned Azerbaijani lawyer Zabil Gahramanov is set to begin at the Ganja City Court, in a case that his supporters and international legal observers say may be linked to his professional activity and criticism of police misconduct.

The case will be heard by Judge Ulkar Babazade. The preliminary hearing has been scheduled for July 8.

Gahramanov, who had until now been held at the Baku Pre-Trial Detention Center in Kurdakhani, has been transferred to Detention Facility No. 2 in Ganja in connection with the start of the trial.

He is charged under four articles of Azerbaijan’s Criminal Code: Article 221.2.2, concerning hooliganism involving resistance to a representative of authority or another person attempting to prevent a breach of public order; and Articles 178.2.2, 178.2.3, and 178.2.4, concerning fraud allegedly committed repeatedly, through abuse of an official position, and causing significant damage.

The lawyer has been in custody since October 23 of last year. On that day, he was accused of injuring a man named Fazil Isgandarov during a dispute at a car wash facility in the Goygol district. The hooliganism charge relates to this incident.

The fraud accusations emerged after Gahramanov’s detention. It was alleged that one of his former clients, Shamkir resident Emin Ibrahimov, filed a complaint against him on the same day. The complaint claimed that the lawyer had taken 5,600 manats and promised that the court proceedings would end in the client’s favor, but the outcome was not satisfactory. Although the trial in question had ended months earlier, the complaint was reportedly filed only on the day of Gahramanov’s arrest.

Several other complainants later appeared.

Gahramanov rejects all charges against him. He says he was arrested as a result of a provocation because of his critical statements about unlawful actions by officers of the Ganja City Main Police Department and his posts on Facebook.

Before his arrest, Gahramanov had represented numerous individuals detained by officers of the Ganja City Main Police Department, whose cases were investigated by the same institution. In several such cases, he had secured acquittals and the release of defendants in court.

Gahramanov worked at the Ganja Regional Bar Office. Two weeks before his arrest, his legal practice was suspended for six months following a complaint by the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

The Rule of Law Institute of the International Association of Lawyers, UIA-IROL, has expressed concern over the case. In its statement, the organization noted that Gahramanov’s arrest may be connected to his professional work as a lawyer and his criticism of unlawful actions by police bodies in Azerbaijan.

The case raises serious concerns about the independence of the legal profession in Azerbaijan. Lawyers who challenge police abuse, defend detainees in politically or institutionally sensitive cases, or publicly criticize law enforcement bodies increasingly face disciplinary pressure, suspension, criminal prosecution, or imprisonment.

Gahramanov’s prosecution therefore appears to fit a broader pattern in which the justice system is used not only against opposition politicians, journalists, and activists, but also against lawyers who attempt to defend them or expose abuses within the law enforcement system.