site.btaProsecutors Chamber Must Rule on Merits Regarding Acting Prosecutor General, Justice Minister Says

"In my opinion, there should be a ruling on the merits so as to end this grave crisis of the rule of law," Bulgarian caretaker Deputy Prime Minister and Justice Minister Andrey Yankulov told the media before Wednesday's meeting of the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) Prosecutors Chamber.

The agenda of the meeting includes Yankulov's proposal for the designation of a new acting prosecutor general. 

According to Yankulov's, the Chamber's behaviour so far shows reluctance to address this issue, and as a result of this, Borislav Sarafov has been acting prosecutor general for nearly three years now and it is not at all clear when this interim term of office will come to an end.

"Let's see what approach the Prosecutors Chamber will take and whether it will consider my proposal at all," the Justice Minister said.

There is lingering controversy over the legitimacy of Sarafov's continued tenure as acting prosecutor general. A number of Bulgarian courts argue that under the Judicial System Act as amended, his capacity as acting prosecutor general lapsed on July 21, 2025, i.e. six months after the entry into force of these provisions. For its part, the SJC Prosecutors Chamber argues that this time limit does not apply to Sarafov because his election on June 16, 2023 predated the revision in question, which does not make specific provisions for this situation.