Slovak court rules Minister Šutaj Eštok acted illegally in suspension of Ján Čurilla

The Administrative Court in Bratislava has ruled that Slovak Interior Minister Matúš Šutaj Eštok acted illegally when he suspended former NAKA investigator Ján Čurilla from his duties. The court annulled the decision to temporarily deprive Čurilla of his state service, meaning he may return to work.

The dispute centered on Čurilla’s status as a protected whistleblower. Legal representatives and the Office for the Protection of Whistleblowers argued that the Minister was required to seek prior consent from the protection office before taking such action, a step the Minister claimed was unnecessary. The Ministry argued that the suspension was based on allegations of abuse of public authority rather than a whistleblower report, and maintained that the individual was under criminal prosecution at the time the status was obtained.

Following the ruling, SaS party leader Branislav Gröhling called on the Minister to respect the court's decision, warning that failure to do so could result in criminal charges for abuse of power. SaS security team leader Juraj Krúpa also criticized the Minister, alleging a pattern of targeting investigators involved in high-profile cases and noting a high number of lost legal disputes at the ministry.