Qaraganda Cinema Linked to Nazarbayev’s Former Aide to Be Converted into Youth Center

After years of legal battles, the Qaraganda cinema building has been returned to state ownership and will be transformed into a Youth House, Orda.kz reports.

The decision was made by Yermaganbet Bulekpayev, Akim of the Qaraganda region.

The building, formerly known as Lenin Cinema, has a long and controversial history. In 1998, it was officially recognized as a historical and cultural monument.

However, just a year later, the then-akim of Qaraganda, Mazhit Yesenbayev, removed it from the list, paving the way for its privatization. The cinema was then sold for just 1.2 million tenge to a company linked to Yesenbayev’s relatives.

Yesenbayev held several high-ranking positions throughout his career, including serving as Kazakhstan’s Minister of Finance and as an aide to former President Nursultan Nazarbayev.

In 2024, the prosecutor’s office launched an investigation into the legality of the privatization and found violations. The legal battle lasted over six months, culminating in the Qaraganda Economic Court ruling in November 2024, which ordered the property to be returned to the state.

This decision was upheld by an appellate board in January 2025, finalizing the state’s reclaiming of the building.

Original Author: Ruslan Loginov