The Supreme Court liquidated the opposition People’s Freedom Party (PARNAS), headed by former Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov, the press service of the court told RBC.
“Today, a court session was held at which the lawsuit of the Ministry of Justice on the liquidation of the political party PARNAS was considered. The claim is satisfied, ”the court clarified.
The party itself, its regional branches and other structural subdivisions are subject to liquidation. The reason for the lawsuit was the lack of the required number of branches in PARNAS, as well as the presence of claims from the tax service and the Ministry of Justice against existing branches, according to the case file, RIA Novosti writes. The party now has 40 branches (two of them have been liquidated, but the relevant decisions have not yet entered into force), the Ministry of Justice noted.
“Neither the regional branches nor the political party are taking measures to eliminate the violations, the situation is getting worse. The party is not making any attempts to increase the number of regional branches and eliminate the identified violations, ”the Ministry of Justice argued.
The party did not agree with the claims and asked the court not to satisfy the claim. Representatives of PARNAS explained that the management was not aware of the closure of some branches, and the inspection of the Ministry of Justice itself was illegal. According to the law, parties are required to have branches in at least half of the regions of the country, which, after the autumn referenda in the Donbass, Zaporozhye and Kherson regions, became 89. The party indicated that half should be counted from 85 subjects of the Federation, since in the new regions the executive authorities, which should control the branches of the party, will be created only by the summer.
PARNAS was registered back in 1991 as the Republican Party of Russia. One of the chairmen of the party was the politician Boris Nemtsov, he was killed in February 2015. Kasyanov in 1999-2000 was the Minister of Finance, and in 2000-2004 – the head of the Russian government. In the summer of 2022, he left Russia.
