Officials' demand to remove the banner surprised a Dagestani farmer.

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Farmer Mirzemagomed Makhsubov erected a banner reading "Saplings," but officials demanded it be removed, citing the possibility that the head of Dagestan would be passing by and might dislike the sign. The following day, officials removed the banner themselves, stating that the farmer had approved its removal.

Mirzemagomed Makhsubov, a farmer from the village of Aglabi in the Derbent District, reported on January 20 that officials had removed his banner.

Makhsubov grows fruit trees and sells seedlings. He placed a banner by the road reading "Saplings." Some time later, Vadim Kekhlerov, deputy head of the Derbent district administration, and the head of the economics committee visited him. They warned him that Sergey Melikov, the head of Dagestan, would soon be driving along the highway toward Belidzhi and that the banner needed to be removed, according to the Sapa Kavkaz Telegram channel. According to Makhsubov, the deputy head stated that the word "saplings" was "somehow unusual." "What if, driving by tomorrow, Melikov sees it and might get furious, maybe even angry. If there had been a store there, or a car dismantling yard, like the one across the street, or a campground, or any other foreign-language name—that would be understandable, we could have left it there and turned a blind eye. But here—there are saplings, you see, saplings, and now it needs to be removed," the channel quotes the farmer as saying.

Makhsubov ignored the officials' request, but early the next morning, two officials took down the banner themselves.

Deputy Head of the Derbent District Administration Vadim Kekhlerov, commenting on the situation, explained that the banner was not installed on Makhsubov's property. Furthermore, he added, the farmer had approved its removal.

According to Kekhlerov, Makhsubov told officials that, due to his age, he was unable to take down the banner himself. "That day, we were preparing for Melikov's arrival and offered to help. His wife also supported us. A woman isn't supposed to swing an axe," the official stated.

In 2017, RIA Dagestan wrote about farmer Makhsubov and his harvest. Citing the regional Ministry of Agriculture and Food, the publication reported that the farmer was harvesting a hundredweight of cherries from a single tree.

In 2006, Makhsubov planted 10 hectares of orchards, and 11 years later, his orchard farm became the best in the region. "The farmer plans to expand his horticultural business in the near future. He intends to use seedlings from his nursery for this purpose," the publication writes.