The case of school principal Gulirano Kosimova, who was beaten, stripped naked and then filmed by several police officers, has become one of the most revealing human rights cases in Uzbekistan in 2025. What began as a staged police operation in April led to public outrage after her story emerged through local media. Her brave testimony led to a trial and the convictions of two of the perpetrators, the head of the district police and his deputy in Fergana region. However, serious concerns remain about the narrow scope of accountability and the failure to prosecute the others involved.
Systemic Abuse
In late November 2025, the Kuva District Criminal Court in Fergana region delivered its verdict in one of Uzbekistan’s most disturbing police abuse cases, sentencing former Furkat district police chief Akmal Khodjayev and his deputy Jasurbek Rasulov to four years of deprivation of liberty in a so-called “settlement colony” similar to an open prison. It was a notably lenient punishment given the documented violence and humiliation meted out to the victims.
Gulirano Kosimova and her acquaintance, former head of district tax inspection office Kurbonali Abdurakhmonov, became unsuspecting victims of a staged operation on April 17, 2025, intended to frame Abdurakhmonov for rape after he refused the district police chief’s demand to purchase 20 televisions for his staff.
When Kosimova went to Abdurakhmonov’s house, ten police officers entered unannounced, attacked and stripped them while filming the abuse and demanded that Kosimova testify against Abdurakhmonov on the video.
The two ringleaders were convicted of numerous serious offenses — disclosing information that discredited and humiliated an individual and exposed intimate aspects of their private life, unlawful intrusion into a home, abuse of authority, falsification of operational-search materials, and unlawful detention — the other nine were not prosecuted and remain in their jobs as law enforcement officers.
Throughout October and November, the trial was marred by the absence of key witnesses, closed hearings, and the exclusion of the media on the grounds of alleged state secrets, as well as the removal of Kosimova from the courtroom after she protested against discriminatory treatment. Following her public video appeal on November 7, the court opened the trial to the press, starting on November 12.
Contradictory Testimonies and Coordinated Abuse
The hearings on October 18 and November 25 provided crucial insight into the magnitude of the abuse. During the staged raid, Abdurakhmonov described being beaten and dragged downstairs while Kosimova was left upstairs with several officers where he could hear her screaming. He said he realized he was being framed when both were forcibly taken into a room and filmed to create false evidence of a sexual encounter.
Further testimony revealed inconsistencies in the defendants’ attempts to explain their actions. Khodjayev claimed the operation was a lawful intervention to prevent alleged misconduct involving a minor, but his description of the events, timing, and rationale conflicted sharply with other evidence, including camera footage and police call logs. He denied all responsibility for her injuries, humiliation, or coercion and after delivering his statement, refused to answer further questions from the prosecutor.
The testimony from Khodjayev’s deputy, Rasulov, offered no further clarity. He stated that he was simply following Khodjayev’s orders and claimed that a call had been received weeks earlier suggesting misconduct at the tax inspector’s residence. He alleged that Kosimova and Abdurakhmonov were discovered in a compromising situation and dismissed all allegations of violence, insisting that media reports were exaggerated and unfair.
During these hearings, there was a sudden change in the testimony given by key officers during the investigation, raising concerns about coordinated attempts to avoid cross examination and an effort to cover up wrongdoing.
Partial Justice
Although the November 28 verdict formally acknowledges the violations, the judgment addresses only two perpetrators. In its final ruling the court itself recognized at least nine additional police officers who participated directly in the assault, humiliation, filming, and coercion of Kosimova and Abdurakhmonov . These officers include those identified during the trial as having inflicted beatings, switched off cameras between assaults, and attempted to force Kosimova to sign a fabricated rape statement.
Despite this, none of these officers have been suspended or charged.
Following the verdict, Kosimova told Kun.uz that she was relieved to see the trial conclude but stressed that justice is far from complete. “The truth is being acknowledged, but this is not something to celebrate. The remaining officers who were involved must also be held accountable.”
The case exposes selective application of the law and systemic weaknesses in the judicial system that is reluctant to confront the power dynamics within law enforcement institutions. What is also striking is the disparity in choice of punishments that appear to be applied depending on the status of the convicted but not the severity of the crime.
Uzbek Forum for Human Rights has previously reported on the relentless cruelty suffered by Dildora Khakimova, a teacher and human rights activist from Kashkadarya, who is serving a six-year sentence on dubious charges of “extortion” in an actual prison where she is only allowed to see relatives, including her infant daughter, once every three months. Not even her life-threatening medical condition that requires urgent treatment has moved the authorities to alleviate the terms of her sentence or detention.
The Uzbek government has presented its judicial reforms as part of a broader commitment to strengthening human rights. Yet this case clearly demonstrates that torture and abuse are still met with impunity.
The authorities should immediately suspend all officers named by the victim and conduct a thorough, transparent and impartial investigation. Only when every perpetrator is brought to justice and torture is unequivocally condemned at all levels will Uzbekistan begin to demonstrate true commitment to reform.
