The Khatlon region court sentenced 51-year-old clergyman Abdulkhannon Mannonov – the hero of a high-profile video – to 6 years in prison. The court announced the verdict last week. He was found guilty of extremism. The clergyman’s lawyer, Saidjabborr Aliyev, confirmed the court’s verdict in a conversation with Radio Ozodi on April 11, but began […]
The Khatlon region court sentenced 51-year-old clergyman Abdulkhannon Mannonov – the hero of a high-profile video – to 6 years in prison.
The court announced the verdict last week. He was found guilty of extremism.
The clergyman’s lawyer, Saidjabborr Aliyev, confirmed the court’s verdict in a conversation with Radio Ozodi on April 11, but began to provide details.
The opinion of the convicted clergyman and his relatives is unknown. It is also unclear whether they will appeal the verdict to a higher court.
While Abdulkhannon Mannonov was sentenced to 6 years in prison, it is reported that the investigation into his case lasted three months. During this time, he was held in a temporary detention facility.
The authorities have not yet officially commented on the verdict against the clergyman.
In January 2023, a video circulated on social media showing a man scolding the groom and guests at a wedding. In the footage, the groom in a suit and the bride in a white veil are in the groom’s house, while guests and relatives dance to music. A bearded man in a Tajik chapan disconnects the amplifiers from the electricity and demands to stop the music and “all this nonsense.” As a result, the dancing and music stop, and everyone leaves.
It later became known that this was the imam of the mosque and a resident of the Kushonien district of the Khatlon region, Abdulkhannon Mannonov, and the groom was his nephew.
The video sparked mixed reactions on social media and became high-profile.
The press center of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Tajikistan confirmed on January 27, 2023, in the program “MIA News” that a resident of the village of Mekhnatobod in the Kushonien district of the Khatlon region and the imam of the local mosque, Abdulkhannon Mannonov, was involved.
“Administrative measures were taken against Abdulkhannon Mannonov by the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Khatlon region for restricting the rights of his nephew Abubakr Usmonov and showing disrespect to society,” the statement noted.
At the same time, the Ministry of Internal Affairs did not specify what administrative punishment was applied to Abdulkhannon Mannonov.
Abdulkhannon Usmonov stated in his testimony that he had warned his nephew in advance to conduct his wedding according to Islamic norms, without songs and dances, but he did not listen.
“Indeed, I got angry. I apologize for that. I made a mistake. I hope to correct this mistake,” said Abdulkhannon Usmonov in a video published by the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
Most users believe that this is a personal and family matter for the man, and therefore the detention by law enforcement and imprisonment is illegal.
One user stated in a private conversation with Azda TV that “law enforcement agencies should not interfere in the personal affairs of residents. Even if this clergyman was found guilty, a milder form of punishment, such as a fine, should have been applied. However, in recent years, the authorities of Tajikistan have taken a tough stance towards dissenters, particularly religious figures, and even for minor violations, they send them to prison for long terms.