Prosecutor of Akhvakh District of Dagestan demands to cancel decision on changed status of local lands

Zubair Khalidov, Prosecutor of the Akhvakh District of Dagestan, has sent a petition to the Botlikh District Court asking to invalidate the decision of the head of the district Ismail Magomedsharipov on changing the status of local lands.

The latter's decision had prescribed to transfer the agricultural lands ascribed to the local cooperative into municipal ownership, which is strongly opposed by residents of the village of Karata.

According to villagers, the decision of the head of their district is destabilizing the situation, because land in the mountains is a strongest; and any transfer of land plots from one status to another should be done extremely delicately.

The position of the villagers was supported by Zubair Khalidov, Prosecutor General of the Akhvakh District, the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent reports.

The above petition notes that in the course of the prosecutor's check it was established that the district head's decision had no legal force, since it was never published in local media.

Besides, the Prosecutor pointed out that part of disputed lands is under the termless use of the SPK (Agrarian-Production Cooperative) "Karatinsky"; the land plots were also used by locals for cattle husbandry.

The Prosecutor of the Akhvakh District believes that the administration's decision is subject to cancellation; same as the issued land title certificates.

The "Caucasian Knot" correspondent was informed at the Botlikh District Court that the above petition had been received. However, the administration of the Akhvakh District withheld from comments, stating that this is the prerogative of the head of the administration, who was outside the municipality at the moment.