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In 1958, Moscow accused Imam Mustafayev, First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Azerbaijan Communist Party of the Azerbaijan SSR, of “anti-Shaumian” position, withdrawing the entire edition of the first volume of “The history of the Azerbaijan Communist Party” from circulation and suspending the works on the second one, Azerbaijani Azadlyg newspaper reports citing the chairman of the National Council of Azerbaijan, professor Jamil Hasanli.

According to the newspaper, while discussing the first volume of the book “The history of the Azerbaijan Communist Party” in 1958, A. Roslyakov from Turkmenistan, G. Osmanov from Dagestan, S. Beysembayev from Kazakhstan, M. Mirmollayev from Tajikistan, and other experts supported Moscow’s position agreeing with the statement that the book has an “anti-Shaumian” nature. In his turn, Mirmollayev noted that Nariman Narimanov’s name is mentioned 11 times on the 29th page of the book and emphasized that this contains signs of cult of personality.

Moscow representative Pyotr Valuyev heavily criticized the book calling Nariman Narimanov a nationalist. The book was supported only by Azerbaijan’s representatives led by Shikhali Gurbanov, the head of the Propaganda Department of the Azerbaijan Communist Party of the Azerbaijan SSR.

Upon return to Moscow, the specialists presented a report about discussions held in Baku noting that “The history of the Azerbaijan Communist Party” had been written in a nationalist spirit.  They considered its publication an error and offered to punish Shikhali Gurbanov.

At the same time, the book received the highest praise by Imam Mustafayev during the 22nd congress of the Azerbaijan Communist Party in 1958.

Trying to save the situation, Nuredin Mukhidov, a board member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, said that during the discussions, while enumerating Baku commissars, Imam Mustafayev had purportedly put forward Nariman Narimanov and Meshadi Azizbekov and moved Stepan Shaumian aside by coincidence. 

It is significant that in all the institutions and organizations in  Azerbaijan, the portraits of the 26 Baku Commissars were arranged starting with Meshadi Azizbekov’s portrait rather than with Stepan Shaumian’s, as it is customary. In this regard, Vasili Snastin, chief of department the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, said that the arrangement of the portraits changed in articles about 26 Baku Commissars published in Azerbaijan after Imam Mustafayev’s famous speech.

Eventually, by Moscow’s crucial decision, the first volume of the book “The history of the Azerbaijan Communist Party” was withdrawn from all the libraries and bookshops, and the works on the second one were suspended.