(MOSCOW, RUSSIA) – Petrol queues have returned to the Russian capital as the country prepares for parliamentary elections from which the only registered anti-war party has been barred by the Supreme Court.
The Yabloko party was removed from the ballot on official grounds of alleged copyright infringements in campaign materials and suspected foreign financing. However, the decision has been widely interpreted as politically motivated due to the party’s opposition to the war in Ukraine.
Nezavisimaya Gazeta reported on Wednesday that voters have been “deprived of the right to political choice” because of “a line in a song and pictures seen online by a few hundred or thousand people.” The newspaper noted that approximately 111 million registered Russian voters have been denied the opportunity to make a qualified choice.
The publication added that “depriving citizens of the right to choice is less serious than copyright infringement” in the eyes of the authorities.
Moskovsky Komsomolets offered a pro-Kremlin perspective, stating that Russian dictator Vladimir Putin “consistently declares Russia intends to achieve all the goals of the special military operation” and that this requires “full-scale national consolidation.” The paper argued that such consolidation is “inconceivable without consolidation in parliament.”
The outgoing State Duma provided 100 percent support, and the Kremlin expects “similar cohesion” from the next parliament, according to the newspaper.
Yabloko has launched an appeal against the Supreme Court ruling. The party was registered for the election and then struck off the ballot twelve days later, raising questions about whether concerns grew over the popularity of its anti-war message.
In related developments, fuel shortages have resurfaced in Moscow. The deputy Russian energy minister stated two weeks ago that the fuel situation was “fully under control,” yet queues at petrol stations have reappeared across the capital.
The parliamentary election is scheduled for September, with the Kremlin demanding all parties subscribe to the slogan “Russia, Putin, victory” as chanted recently by the speaker of the Russian parliament.
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