MOSCOW: Russian prosecutors yesterday accused protest leader Alexei Navalny of breaking the law in his campaign for Moscow mayor by receiving donations from foreign nationals, adding to the legal woes of President Vladimir Putin’s top critic.
Navalny, 37, a star speaker at anti-Putin rallies who rose to fame through anti-corruption investigations, denied the claim and said that all funding for the September 8 polls was being gathered in strict accordance with the law.
The charismatic lawyer is running against a Kremlin-backed incumbent after being dramatically released from prison last month following his conviction on disputed embezzlement charges.
“A check has confirmed information about foreign financing of Alexei Navalny,” the prosecutor general’s office said in a statement published on its website.
Under Russian law, it is illegal for a candidate to spend money donated by foreigners on a political campaign. The statement said 300 foreign nationals and anonymous donors based in 46 countries including the United States gave Navalny money using a Russia-based Internet payment system.
Navalny, who is shaping up to be the main challenger to pro-Putin mayor Sergei Sobyanin in the election, denied the claim.
“The financing of our campaign is carried out strictly according to the law and is legally absolutely impeccable,” he wrote on his blog.
“All the payments are checked by Moscow’s electoral commission. If they tell us the payment is illegal, there’s a missing second name or a date of birth or especially citizenship, then we return the payment. That’s it.” AFP
