The Constitutional Court considered a petition seeking review of Article 55 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan, which defines the powers of an investigating judge, for its conformity with the Constitution.
The petitioner argued that the challenged provision precludes the possibility of judicial protection at the stage preceding the registration of a report in the Unified Register of Pre-Trial Investigations.
The Constitutional Court established that the reason for returning the complaint to the petitioner without consideration was the absence of initiated pre-trial proceedings. The courts proceeded from the position that, at that stage, there was no subject matter for judicial review as provided for by criminal procedure legislation.
The Constitutional Court noted that everyone’s right to judicial protection is exercised in accordance with the procedures and forms established by law. The Constitution does not prescribe specific types or forms of judicial protection, leaving their determination to the legislature.
At the same time, the petitioner’s arguments sought an assessment of whether the courts had correctly applied the provisions of criminal procedure legislation and, in substance, expressed disagreement with the judicial decisions rendered. Review of the legality and validity of judicial decisions does not fall within the competence of the Constitutional Court.
In view of the above, the Court concluded that there were no legal grounds for admitting the petition for constitutional proceedings.
