MOSCOW, August 29 ( RAPSI) - Russian Defense Ministry has appealed the ruling of a Moscow court which dismissed its lawsuit over a land plot near the village of Nakhabino, RAPSI learnt in the Moscow Commercial Court on Friday.

The lawsuit seeking to annul the sale of 52 hectares (over 128 acres) of land owned by Defense Ministry was dismissed on May 30.

The court ruled that the disputed land plot was sold in February 2012 to a commercial company in accordance with the order on the Armed Forces’ property signed by former minister of defense Anatoly Serdyukov. 

Military prosecutors say that the sale of a land plot was restricted as it had a special status, and the deal should be declared illegal.

The suit was filed after military prosecutors claimed that three forested land plots in the Moscow Region with a total area of over 144 hectares (356 acres) had been sold in violation of law as they were not for sale.

On Wednesday, the Moscow Region Commercial Court declared illegal the sale of another land plot near Nakhabino owned by Defense Ministry. The deal between the Defense Ministry and Partner Capital company over 45.4 hectares (112 acres) of land made on June 1, 2012, has been annulled. The court ruled that the disputed land plot should be returned to the Defense Ministry, which must pay back 739 million rubles ($20.5 million).

Serdyukov was dismissed amid a loud corruption scandal ensued in November 2012 to ensure the impartiality of the criminal investigation.