A Baku court has again banned an arrested journalist from marrying.

A Baku district court has again rejected Meydan TV journalist Aytaj Akhmedova's complaint against a marriage ban in a pretrial detention center.

As reported by the "Caucasian Knot," in April, arrested Meydan TV journalist Aytaj Akhmedova (Tapdyg) stated that she was not allowed to marry animal rights activist Kamran Mammadli. The journalist emphasized that she would appeal to the court to restore her rights. In June, the court of first instance rejected the journalist's claim against the administration of Baku Pretrial Detention Center No. 1, which banned her from marrying. On September 26, the Baku Court of Appeal returned the case to the district court for a new trial.

On October 23, the Khatai District Court of Baku again considered the complaint of Aytaj Akhmedova (Tapdyg) regarding the denial of her marriage to animal rights activist Kamran Mammadli in Pretrial Detention Center No. 1. This is the first time the court has considered the journalist's complaint on the merits, Mammadli told a "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

"Until now, we have only been denied marriage registration verbally and have not been given written responses. For this reason, due to the lack of a written document, the courts have refused to consider the merits of the complaint under the pretext of 'lack of evidence,'" Mammadli explained.

This time, he noted, the court heard his arguments and those of Aytaj Akhmedova, but refused to uphold the complaint. "Judge Aygun Gasanova only announced the operative part of the decision. We should receive the court's decision within three days, and then we will learn the grounds on which the court, by rejecting the complaint, prevented the marriage of two young people," Mammadli said, noting that an appeal will be filed against the court's decision.

A Khatai court employee only confirmed to a "Caucasian Knot" correspondent that the court refused to uphold Akhmedova's complaint.

Obstructing a prisoner's marriage is unlawful, a legal expert pointed out. "The right to marriage is guaranteed by Article 34 of the Constitution of Azerbaijan and is direct, meaning it cannot be restricted. A person held in a pretrial detention facility or already serving a sentence in a penal colony by a court decision is in no way deprived of this right. The facility's management must create conditions for inviting a civil registry office employee to register the marriage," a lawyer, who wished to remain anonymous, told a "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

He also noted that such violations of the rights of those arrested for political reasons are common in Azerbaijan. "Unfortunately, the exercise of certain of their rights, in particular the right to a notarial transaction for issuing a power of attorney or entering into marriage, is being impeded." I remember how obstacles were created to the marriage registration in the prison colony between opposition figure Seymur Hazi and activist Nigar Yagublu. Only after this was publicized in the media were civil registry office employees allowed into the prison. But times are different now, and there's no independent press left in the country," the human rights activist added.

The Meydan TV case, in which Aytaj Tapdyg and several of her colleagues were arrested, was opened in December 2024. After their arrest, the journalists declared their innocence, while their lawyers claimed a lack of evidence. "The charges don't make it clear at all what Aytaj Tapdyg is guilty of or what her connection was to the alleged smuggling. The journalist herself stated that it was all far-fetched, and the true purpose of the arrest was to punish her for her professional activities," said lawyer Javad Javadov.

By August 2025, 11 people had been arrested in the Meydan TV case. 1 . At the end of August, it was announced that the investigation had been completed, and a 12th suspect, photojournalist Akhmed Mukhtar, had appeared in the case. At the same time, the arrested journalists were charged with seven more criminal offenses 2 .