Samarkand entrepreneur jailed, his family fined for opposing illegal demolition of their property – Supreme Court offers band-aid, not justice

Earlier, it had been reported that Qobilov’s property in Payariq district, Samarkand region, was demolished with all equipment inside it, despite the fact that the judicial ruling authorizing the demolition had not yet entered into legal force. The district governor, prosecutor, and other officials reportedly arrived at the scene and ordered an autograder to be driven up to the building. According to reports, the governor instructed the driver to “Push! Clear it out!” without giving the owner a chance to remove his equipment. Qobilov’s attempt to protect his property was treated as a legal offense, and he was sentenced to 10 days in administrative detention.

In addition, three of his family members were charged under Article 194 of the Administrative Code (failure to comply with the lawful demands of internal affairs officers) by the Payariq District Criminal Court on April 23, 2025. They were each fined between 750,000 and 1,875,000 UZS.

An appeal submitted to the Samarkand Regional Court was reviewed but rejected on April 25.

However, the Supreme Court reexamined the case on May 1 under supervisory review and overturned the lower court rulings.

Specifically, the court found that Qobilov’s actions did not constitute an administrative offense under Article 183 of the Administrative Code. Therefore, in accordance with Article 271 (Paragraph 1) of the Administrative Code – which provides for the termination of proceedings when no offense has occurred—the case was dropped.

The fine of 1,875,000 UZS imposed under Article 194 was reduced to 750,000 UZS, and another fine of 1,125,000 UZS issued under Article 61-2 was reduced to 375,000 UZS. In total, Qobilov was sentenced to a single fine of 750,000 UZS under Article 34 and ordered to be immediately released from detention.

Furthermore, the Supreme Court’s decision reduced the fines for Qobilov’s relatives as follows:

• His father Toshpolat Qobilov’s fine was reduced from 1,875,000 UZS to 375,000 UZS,
• His wife Guzal Uralova’s fine from 750,000 UZS to 375,000 UZS,
• His brother Bahrom Raimov’s fine from 1,125,000 UZS to 375,000 UZS.