Russia’s Central Election Commission on Monday unanimously rejected top opposition figure Alexei Navalny’s bid to run against President Vladimir Putin next year, leading him to urge a boycott of the polls. The commission voted 12 to zero in barring Navalny from the presidential election, citing a controversial embezzlement conviction for which he received a five year suspended sentence. Navalny, who has campaigned across Russia in recent months, argued earlier in front of the commission that his conviction was lifted in the European Court of Human Rights, and that banning him from participation would make March´s election illegitimate. The European Court of Human Rights last year quashed the ruling, saying it was unfair, and Russia’s Supreme Court ordered a retrial. The retrial in a Russian court, however, gave Navalny the exact same sentence as before, using almost identical wording as the 2013 decision.

Source: Pakistan Today December 25, 2017 16:18 UTC