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Election procedures should be improved to fight falsifications - Federation Council member

He called for increasing control, including public one, over the election procedures “and not to make corrections to the Criminal Code

Photo ITAR-TASS

Photo ITAR-TASS

MOSCOW, August 15 (Itar-Tass) - It is necessary to improve election procedures to fight election abuses, chairman of the Federation Council Committee for Constitutional Legislation, Legal and Juridical Issues Andrei Klishas told Itar-Tass.

Commenting on the Communists’ position to toughen punishment for falsifications at the elections, Klishas said, “In my view, it is inexpedient because I don’t understand the new terms that the Communist Party proposes.”

“The problem exists and we should deal with it,” the legislator said.

He called for increasing control, including public one, over the election procedures “and not to make corrections to the Criminal Code. This approach is very harmful and unacceptable for criminal legislation”, he said.

Before changing components of crime it is necessary to study legal precedents and work out this problem with the Supreme Court, Klishas said.

The Izvestiya newspaper writes that the Communists prepared amendments to the Criminal Code to increase responsibility for election fraud. “We propose to establish the maximum prison term - up to 15 years in prison. Fines should be also increased: they should amount to three million roubles. Such measures can stop potential criminals,” the Communist Party’s lawyer, Vadim Solovyov, said.

The LDPR and the A Just Russia party gave their preliminary accord to support the idea.

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