According to the information from the CEC working group, the documents submitted by Karimova did not meet the legal requirements related to the elections. According to the National Agency for Religious Affairs and Interethnic Relations, in 2022 she held the position of director of the religious organization "Kelechek Umma," and in 2024 she led the religious educational institution "Sydyk Mukhammed Balty," registered with this agency.
The working group indicated that due to the prohibition on participation in elections for those who engaged in religious activities within five years after its cessation, it was recommended to deny registration.
During the CEC meeting, Karimova stated that she does not consider herself a religious figure and has already ceased her religious activities as of January 1, 2025. She also asked if representatives of the agency and lawyers were present at the meeting. CEC Chairman Tynchtyk Shainazarov responded that a representative of the agency was indeed present and suggested moving on to the main discussion.
The agency representative confirmed the existence of data indicating that Karimova had previously been the director of a religious educational institution.
Karimova acknowledged that she indeed held the position of founder and director of a religious organization, but questioned whether the law could have retroactive effect, as it was adopted recently. Shainazarov explained that when evaluating a candidate, activities over the past five years are taken into account; if the candidate participated in religious activities during this time, registration is not permitted.
She added that she is currently a deputy of the local kenesh. To this, Shainazarov noted that this restriction applies only to candidates for deputies of the Jogorku Kenesh and the president.
CEC members unanimously supported the conclusions of the working group and denied registration to Karimova.
Disagreeing with this decision, Karimova expressed her intention to appeal to the court, as suggested by Tynchtyk Shainazarov.
