A defendant in the “Baymak case” was sent to a punishment cell for three days after speaking in court.

Ilyas Bayguskarov, who is accused of organising mass riots (Article 212 of the Criminal Code), was placed in a punishment cell for three days after speaking in court, reports “7×7.”

The disciplinary action was sparked by Bayguskarov’s speech at the 3 June hearing about the judges overseeing the “Baymak case.” According to the activist, they ignore the statements of defendants and follow orders “from above.”

The cases of the participants in the people’s gathering are being heard not in Bashkortostan, but in neighbouring regions. The Prosecutor’s Office demanded this, arguing that the defendants might try to put pressure on participants in the court proceedings.

• In January 2024 in Baymak, a town in southern Bashkortostan, thousands of people gathered at the court to support Bashkir activist and former head of the “Bashkort” movement, Fail Alsynov, who was being sentenced that day for a speech at another people’s gathering. Alsynov was given four years in a penal colony.
• After the demonstration at the court, participants in the gathering began to be detained on administrative charges, and later law enforcement authorities initiated a criminal case for mass riots. More than 80 people became defendants in the case. One of them, Dima Davletkildin, was severely beaten by law enforcement officers. Another defendant, Rifat Dautov, died after being detained—his family were not told the cause of death or given any official report. Minniyar Bayguskarov, a participant in the Baymak protests, took his own life due to pressure from law enforcement authorities.