Azerbaijan, Baku / Тrend corr K. Zarbliyeva / The lawsuit by the residents of Hajigabul region Ranjbar village against the state departments and BP company is being viewed.
The trial of the residents against the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR) and the State Committee on Land and Cartography continued at the Hajigabul Region Court on 24 May. The representative of the Committee was absent due to him participating in another trial.
The Chairman of the League on Protection of Citizen Labour Rights, Sahib Mammadov, reported to Trend that in 2003 the landowners signed a contract to restrict the right to use the land. The representative of the plaintiffs applied to invite the landowners that had taken part in the signing of the contract, as well as BP employees, Mehman and Eyyub, and the representative of the Executive Power of the village, Akif Zeynalov, to court to witness the procedure. BP representative stated that the contract with the landowners had not been signed. The appeal was allowed and the next hearing is scheduled to 5 June.
The residents of Ranjbar village say that BP company, the operator of Baku-Supsa and Baku-Novorossiysk pipelines intended for transportation of Caspian Sea oil in western and northern directions, restricted the right to use the land that is the property of 7,200 people for 10 years, as a pipeline lies through the territory. The landowners have demanded compensation for the land, damage and loss of income.