MOSCOW, December 19 (Itar-Tass) —— Moscow's Presnensky district court on Monday dismissed former Moscow mayor Yuri Luzhkov's suit against Sergei Naryshkin to defend honour and dignity, the plaintiff's attorney Alexei Melnikov told Itar-Tass.
The decision was not unexpected, but it will be appealed against to the Moscow city court, he said.
Luzhkov brought the suit after Kremlin chief of staff Naryshkin made a statement about a high level of corruption in the former Moscow government. Luzhkov believes the statement besmirches his honour and dignity and demands to pay one-million-rouble compensation through the court for the moral harm.
The Kremlin official in his turn did not agree with the ex-mayor's demands and noted that the statistics showed the level of corruption was high when Luzhkov was head of the city. Besides, Naryshkin’s representative said the statement was just a view and Luzhkov's suit was unfounded and would not be won.