LGBT activist says he’s being sued for insulting the Duma deputies responsible for Russia’s ban on ‘gay propaganda'

Russian police have reportedly charged a prominent and controversial gay-rights activist with insulting two members of parliament. Nikolai Alexeev says he was called in for questioning today by federal investigators, who informed him that he’s being accused of illegally offending two Duma deputies, Elena Mizulina and Olga Batalina. If convicted, he could be sentenced to as many as 12 months of corrective labor.

Alexeev says police released him on his own recognizance. He denies his guilt and promises to fight for his “complete exoneration.”

Alexeev told the news agency RBC that the charges are based on events from June 2013, when Alexeev in an Internet post criticized Mizulina and Batalina for their support of Russia’s ban on so-called “gay propaganda.” Until now, Alexeev was only a witness in the police investigation, he says.

Alexeev says investigators have also questioned former deputy prime minister and current political commentator Alfred Kokh, as well as journalists Ksenia Sobchak, Elena Kostuychenko, and Olga Bakyushinskaya.