Mir Teymur Yaqubov

Mir Teymur Mir Alakbar oghlu Yagubov (; 1904 – 17 February 1970) was an Azerbaijani politician who served as the First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Azerbaijan Communist Party in 1953 and 1954.

A land surveyor by profession, Yagubov worked as a teacher and held various roles in the Azerbaijani Komsomol. From 1938, he was involved with the NKVD troika and served as Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of the Azerbaijan SSR, before becoming People's Commissar (Minister) for Internal Affairs, a position he held until 1950. After returning to party work, he held high-ranking positions within the Azerbaijan Communist Party and became the head of the Azerbaijan SSR in April 1953. He was dismissed 10 months later, in February 1954, after criticism of his organizational skills, and was expelled from the Communist Party of the Soviet Union in 1956.

Early life Mir Teymur Mir Alakbar oghlu Yagubov was born on 1904, in Baku. His father served as a sailor and rose to the rank of captain. However, due to the family's financial difficulties, Mir Teymur was only able to receive primary education. In 1916, he graduated from the four-year Russian-Tatar (Azerbaijani) school in Baku, and from May 1919 to June 1920, he worked as a cashier at the Aliyev Brothers' bank.

After Soviet rule was established in Azerbaijan, Mir Teymur Yagubov worked at the Baku Soviet, serving as senior supervisor of the municipal economy department from June 1920 to September 1925, and the responsible secretary of the organizational department from September 1925 to August 1926. During these years, he also pursued his education, graduating from the evening courses of the Workers' Faculty in 1926. At the same time, he became a member of the Russian Young Communist League in 1923, a candidate for membership in the Russian Communist (Bolshevik) Party in April 1925, and a full member of the party in September 1927. However, shortly afterward, Yagubov himself came under criticism. At the September 1953 plenary session of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, Yagubov faced significant opposition, with his speeches being met with sarcastic remarks from Vyacheslav Molotov and Lazar Kaganovich.

In January 1954, a group of CPSU Central Committee members visited Baku to assess the situation and prepare a report for Nikita Khrushchev. The report gave a highly negative assessment of Yagubov's and Teymur Guliyev's leadership, citing their failure to pay adequate attention to agricultural development and their detachment from party and Soviet activists, whom they failed to engage with effectively. Yagubov was also blamed for being unable to organize the work of the Central Committee Bureau and for his reluctance to make changes in key leadership positions. The CPSU Central Committee delegation recommended his removal from office due to these shortcomings. He was replaced by Imam Mustafayev.

Later years and death After being removed from his leadership position, Mir Teymur Yagubov worked as the director of the Khachmaz Canning Factory from May 1954 to 1956.

On August 28, 1956, he was dismissed from membership of the Communist Party with a decision of the Central Committee of the Azerbaijan Communist Party. The decision was based on accusations that he had engaged in criminal, anti-party, and anti-state activities, directly participated in the repression of Soviet citizens, and violated socialist principles.

From 1957, Yagubov worked as an engineer in the project-estimate group of the "Azprodstroy" republic trust. He died on February 13, 1970.

Honours Mir Teymur Yagubov received with several significant awards throughout his career. He was awarded the Order of Lenin on 27 April 1940, and received the Order of the Red Banner twice, on 15 June 1943, and 24 August 1949. His other honors included the Order of the Red Banner of Labour on 25 February 1946, and the Order of the Red Star on 28 November 1941 and the Medal For the Victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945. On 24 April 1943, he was also named an Honored Worker of the NKVD.