DUSHANBE, July 10, 2015, Asia-Plus – The Islamic Revival Party (IRP) Political Council yesterday released a statement, in which it calls the statement by the Prosecutor-General’s Office regarding IRP’s appeal to the guarantors of the inter-Tajik peace agreement “politically committed.”

The IRP Political Council notes that the Prosecutor-General’s Ofifce does not have the right give political assessment to activities of political parties.

According to the statement, the IRP appealed to the guarantors of the inter-Tajik peace agreement in accordance with the norms of the country’s Constitution because its appeals to the Prosecutor-General’s Office, the Interior Ministry, the State Committee for National Security, the Supreme Court, Tajik Ombudsman and even the President had remained without reply.

“The authorities intend to ban the Islamic Revival Party under the pretext that our organizations in many cities and districts of Tajikistan were closed, but we  do not recognize applications for departure from the party, which were signed under pressure, and continue working across the country within the boundaries of the country’s legislation and our party charter,” the statement says.

We will recall that the Prosecutor-General’s Office on July 8 released a statement, in which it calls the Islamic Revival Party (IRP)’s appeal to the guarantors of the inter-Tajik peace agreement and its previous appeal to the president “populism.”

Dozens of members and heads of the Islamic Revival Party (IRP)''s regional offices on June 20 and 21 announced their departures from the IRP by way of online videos.  Some cited the party''s poor performance in the March 1 parliamentary elections, which left the IRP without a seat in parliament for the first time since 2000.  Others said they were disheartened by a series of sex videos involving party officials.  Still others simply reasoned that there was no need for an Islamic party in Tajikistan.  Many of the online announcements end with expressions of support and gratitude for the policies of President Emomali Rahmon.

Founded in October 1990, the Islamic Revival Party of Tajikistan is the only Islamic party officially registered in former Soviet Central Asia.  The IRP was registered on December 4, 1991.  It was banned by the Supreme Court in June 1993 and legalized in August 1999.  Its official newspaper is Najot (Salvation).  According to some source, the IRP now has some 50,000 members.

Since 1999, the party has reportedly been the second-largest party in Tajikistan after the ruling People''s Democratic Party of Tajikistan.

In the 2005 and 2010 parliamentary elections, the IRP won two out of 63 seats in the parliament, but in the 2015 parliamentary polls the party failed to clear the 5 percent threshold needed to win parliament seats.

The party leaders said the elections were not fair and alleged fraud in vote-counting.