President of Chechnya appeals against refusal to open case against "Novaya Gazeta" journalists

President of Chechnya Ramzan Kadyrov asks the prosecutor's office to cancel the decision to refuse about refusal to initiate a slander case against Dmitri Muratov, editor-in-chief of the "Novaya Gazeta".

"The prosecutor's office has accepted to consideration Kadyrov's complaint against the refusal to open a criminal case against Dmitri Muratov and three more journalists of the edition," Andrei Krasnenkov, Ramzan Kadyrov's lawyer, said today.

Mr Krasnenkov has explained that Kadyrov had addressed the Inquiry Division of Moscow GUVD (City Interior Department) with a demand to open a slander criminal case against Mr Muratov. The lawyer added that President of Chechnya had found slanderous the publication of "Novaya Gazeta" entitled "Viennese Murder", dealing with possible Kadyrov's involvement in the murder of Chechen resident Umar Israilov, committed in Austria, as the "Interfax" reports.

Another reason of the suit was in the articles of "Novaya Gazeta", telling about the murder of lawyer Stanislav Markelov. "Referring to anonymous human rights activists, they supposed Kadyrov could have to do with the lawyer's murder," said Mr has told Krasnenkov.

According to his story, the Inquiry Division at first refused to bring case against Muratov; and this decision was appealed against at the prosecutor's office. According to Krasnenkov, the supervising body has one month to answer the complaint.

"In my complaint I assert that referred that the check of Kadyrov's claim was insufficient," the lawyer has concluded.