Azerbaijani opposition figure Novruzov has been arrested for 25 days.

Azerbaijan Popular Front Party activist Jeyhun Novruzov has been sentenced to 25 days of administrative arrest. Associates believe Novruzov is being persecuted for criticizing police activity.

As reported by the "Caucasian Knot," by the end of January, 20 members of the Azerbaijan Popular Front Party (APFP) were in custody "on false criminal charges," said Natig Adilov, head of the party's press service. "Arrests of party members on administrative charges continue," he noted. In February, security forces in Ganja detained party member Rafig Huseyn, which activists considered political persecution.

The chairman of the Sabail district organization of the PFPA, Jeyhun Novruzov, was detained on the afternoon of March 13, the head of the party's press service, Natig Adilov, told a "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

According to him, Novruzov was first taken to the 8th The activists were taken to the police station and then to the Sabail District Court of Baku, which sentenced them to 25 years of administrative arrest under charges of petty hooliganism and failure to comply with the lawful demands of a police officer (Articles 510 and 535.1 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of Azerbaijan).

“However, this is a false accusation. In fact, Novruzov was arrested for publishing a critical post on Facebook* four days ago about police officers unfairly fining pedestrians and demanding that these law enforcement officers be punished,” Adilov said.

Novruzov’s family and associates are concerned about the activist’s health, as he recently underwent surgery to insert a stent into a heart vessel.

“He felt ill at the police station and asked that his family be informed of the need for urgent medication. Such injustice and arbitrary treatment of a person who has undergone heart surgery is unacceptable and life-threatening. However, "Violations of laws and arbitrary treatment of PFPA representatives have become the 'norm.' Two dozen PFPA members, including party leader Ali Kerimli, are being held in prison on trumped-up charges, and administrative arrests of our party members have become literally routine," Adilov noted. He added that an appeal would be filed against Novruzov's arrest.

Sagif Gurbanov, head of the PFPA's organizational department, personally witnessed Novruzov point out the unlawful actions of the police. "Jeykhun said that the police are not allowed to fine pedestrians if there is no crosswalk in the visible area. He pointed to Section 9 of Article 40 of the Road Traffic Law. However, the police officer ignored his remark, and Jeykhun wrote a post about it," Gurbanov told a "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

Article 40 describes the rules for pedestrian crossing, while Section 9 regulates their actions in the absence of a pedestrian sign. According to this rule, in areas without a median strip and unmarked, clearly visible from both sides, and without a crossing or intersection within the visible area, pedestrians must "cross the road perpendicular to the edge of the roadway."

A Sabail Court employee confirmed the information about Novruzov's arrest. Caucasian Knot was unable to obtain comment from the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

Novruzov had previously been persecuted: on the evening of December 13, 2024, police detained him in the Baku settlement of "20th Precinct," and the following day, the Sabail District Court sentenced Novruzov to 10 days of administrative arrest for disobeying police. Fellow party members then claimed the opposition leader's arrest was politically motivated.