Lawyer Proposes Renaming Talgar Street After Sherzat Polat

The lawyer of Sherzat Polat’s family has asked Talgar Akim Arystan Bauyrum to rename either Mendeleev or Shota Rustaveli Street in memory of the 16-year-old boy who was killed, Orda.kz reports.

Lawyer Meirman Shekeyev posted the appeal on Instagram, noting that neither Mendeleev nor Rustaveli had any connection to Kazakhstan. He argued that renaming would honor Sherzat’s memory and move away from “the legacy of the Soviet regime.”

According to Shekeyev, the akim promised to consider the proposal.

On September 13, Talgar residents held a traditional memorial feast in memory of Sherzat, where Shekeyev called him “a person who had awakened Kazakhstan's society.”

The homicide trial concluded in Taldykorgan in late 2024. Nine defendants received prison sentences ranging from 1.5 to 23 years.

Original Author: Alexandra Mokhireva