Gonabadi dervish, Parviz Malekshahi started serving a six-months prison term in jail on Monday 13th Azar 1391 (Dec 3, 2012).

According to a report by Majzooban Noor, Gonabadi dervish, Parviz Malekshahi a resident of Alashtar county has been taken to central prison of Khorramabad to serve out a six-months sentence on charge of ” insulting the leadership” and “Propaganda against the Regime” by just participating in Sufi’s meeting.

Mr.Parviz Malekshahi who is an experienced educators and holder of Dervish ceremonies of night before Friday, arrested along with his 4 family members (Hamzeh Malekshahi, Mohammad Malekshahi, Mohsen Malekshahi and Hamid Reza Naderi) by security agents on Khordad 1389 ( June 2010 ).

They Were held in solitary confinement of Khorramabad prison under pressure to cancel Dervish ceremonies.

In the first, Mr.Malekshahi was sentenced to 6 months imprisonment by Alashtar’s Revolutionary Court and after his attorneys objected against the decision, the case was referred to Branch 8 of the Appeals Court in Lorestan but unfortunately the same sentence was upheld on appeal.

It should be noted that, right now, 12 Gonabadi dervishes have been confined in Islamic Republic of Iran’s prisons:

•Seven gonabadi dervishes who are managers of Majzooban Noor website and lawyers’s dervishes that have been held in Evin prison for more than 15 months.

•Two Gonabadi dervishes who are confined in Shiraz Adel Abad prison.

•Gonabadi dervish poet and journalist at Shargh Newspaper, Mr.Ali Reza Roushan who started serving a one-year prison term in Evin on charges of “gathering and colluding to disturb national security” on 27th Aban 1391 ( Nov 17, 2012 ).

•Gonabadi dervish, Mr.Ehsanollah Amanian who was sent to the Prison in order to serve out five months jail-term after receiving 50 lashes on Saturday 15 Mehr 1391 (Oct 07 2012).