Russia’s constitutional court ruled on Thursday in favor of two former state officials who filed complaints after they were sacked for criticizing the institutions they worked for.
Lyubov Kondratyeva, the former chief tax inspector from Russia’s Federal Tax Service, was fired after he criticized the tax service’s system of repaying travel allowances during an interview with Moscow’s City TV channel.
Alexey Mumolin, a former police officer in the central Russian city of Tolyatti, was sacked after he posted a video on the internet criticizing the running of his department.
The two officials complained that the legislation under which they were sacked contradicts the Russian Constitution, which guarantees freedom of speech, the right to disseminate information and equality of Russians with no regard to their official capacity.
“The Constitutional Court pointed out that an official can express his or her opinion publicly if it corresponds with public interests, and the motives are not aimed at achieving personal goals,” the court press service said.