NTV journalists filed a lawsuit to declare the appointment of new channel management illegal

Representatives of the journalistic team of the NTV television company filed a lawsuit in the Presnensky Interdistrict Court of the capital to declare the decision of the NTV Shareholders Council, held on April 3, illegal. The Council decided to replace the current management of the television company. Previously, the TV channel filed a similar lawsuit with the Moscow Arbitration Court.

“Journalists have reasonable doubts about the court decisions that have been made until now,” Media-Most lawyer Yuri Bagraev explained on Thursday, speaking at a press conference in Moscow.

“Journalists propose to put a final end to this conflict through a court decision,” the lawyer said. Until a court decision is made on these claims, “it is proposed to introduce a moratorium” on administrative decisions at the TV channel, Bagraev said.

According to another lawyer for the television company, Alexander Berezin, at the Shareholders' Council on April 3, only one shareholder participated in the vote on the appointment of new NTV management. Berezin himself, who had all the powers of attorney from other shareholders, was not allowed into the board meeting by Gazprom security.

The lawyer said that Gazprom violated the law on mass media, since “not a single journalist from the channel was involved in the appointment of the editor-in-chief of NTV.” Berezin considers this “an unfair use of contradictions in the law,” as well as “the use of courts and other government bodies for private interests.”