The Chisinau Court of Appeals on Thursday rejected the appeal filed jointly by the Moldovan Human Rights Institute (IDOM), the Public Lawyers Bar and the Ministry of Justice, against the decision of the Supreme Magistracy Council (CSM), which refused to impose disciplinary punishment on two judges and relieve Chief Justice Ion Muruianu of his duty, as recommended by the Disciplinary Committee, Info-Prim Neo. The Disciplinary Committee advised the CSM to discipline judges Vasile Cherdivara and Vasile Ignat by imposing a “severe reprimand” and, respectively, “retrogression” on them. The CSM rejected the measure with 6 votes, arguing that the judges in question could not be sanctioned in any case because the decisions passed by them were irreversible. The applicants claimed that the CSM's decision was illegal because of a lack of quorum, with at least 7 votes being required. They also challenged the justification of the decision, which, the applicants say, contravenes the relevant international rules and common sense. The explanation of the Chisinau Court of Appeal's decision has not been made public yet. The annotated decision is to be issued within 15 days, the IDOM said in a press release. The applicants said they will appeal against the decision in the higher court after the explanation is released.