Navalny's Tuesday Hearing Moved To Bigger Courtroom Amid Media Frenzy

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 01st February, 2021) A hearing in the case of Russian opposition activist Alexey Navalny, who faces a custodial term for repeatedly violating parole, will take place on Tuesday in the Moscow City Court after a smaller venue was scrapped.

"After Moscow's Simonovsky District Court received a [large] number of media accreditation requests ... it was decided to hold a mobile court hearing at the Moscow City Court," an announcement read.

This will allow for greater transparency and guarantee social distancing.

Journalists who will not fit into the courtroom will be able to watch the hearing via live-stream from another building of the sprawling court complex.

The Russian chief prosecutor's office has upheld a bid of the prison authority to jail Navalny, saying the move was legal and justified. Navalny was taken into custody upon his arrival from Germany in January, after he was sentenced to probation on a embezzlement conviction.