Scientist Dragan Hajduković has urged the Administrative Court panel to promptly rectify a significant error that, he claims, unlawfully denied him the right to appeal the jury’s decision regarding the Thirteenth of July Prize.

On Wednesday, the Administrative Court dismissed Hajduković’s lawsuit challenging the jury’s choice for this year’s Thirteenth of July Award.

According to Hajduković, the Administrative Court explained that he lacked the right to sue because the jury’s award decision “did not adjudicate any right of the plaintiff or his legally recognized interest, thus he could not acquire the right to file a lawsuit on that basis.”

In an open letter to the Administrative Court, he asserted that their claim, suggesting neither he nor the other candidates had the right to sue, is, to say the least, incorrect.

Hajduković pointed out that the Law on State Awards outlines six distinct areas eligible for the Thirteenth of July Award and explicitly states only one award can be given in each area.

He argued that the jury was aware of its lawful duty to distribute three awards across three different fields but scandalously awarded all three in the area of culture and artistic creation.

According to Hajduković, this constitutes a clear and undeniable violation of Article 17 of the Law on State Awards.

He further claimed that the jury’s decision effectively divided candidates into two categories: those in culture and artistic creation who “received two more awards than they deserved” and candidates from other fields “who were denied two awards they are legally entitled to by the jury’s decision.”

“Thus, contrary to your explanation, the jury’s decision indeed impacts my rights and those of all other candidates beyond the realm of culture and artistic creation,” his letter to the Administrative Court reads.

Hajduković asserted that the jury’s ruling fundamentally strips all candidates from fields outside culture and the arts of their right to be considered.

Although he was officially listed as a candidate for the award, he stated that, due to the jury’s unlawful decision, he effectively was not a candidate.

“I publicly urge the Administrative Court panel, chaired by Judge Veljko Vujović with members Lidija Novović and Svetlana Radošević, to urgently amend the serious error that has unlawfully deprived me and all other candidates outside the cultural field of the right to appeal,” Hajduković stated.

He added that any silence after highlighting this mistake would be a scandal.

“I would like to mention that I have proactively initiated other lawsuits alongside this one in the Administrative Court, and I will continue my fight,” his letter concluded.

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