Rada refused to decriminalize the "article by Tymoshenko"

On October 5, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine rejected all four bills on amendments to the Criminal Code, which would allow ex-Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko in case of accusatory sentence in the “gas case” to avoid criminal liability, the RIA Novosti website reports.

The three bills from the opposition, which provide for the “decriminalization” of the Summary of Tymoshenko, 365 articles of the Criminal Code (“excess power and official powers”), the deputies refused to include in the agenda. For the fourth bill, 144 parliamentarians voted, although 226 votes are needed for a positive decision.

In mid -September, opposition deputies introduced four bills to the parliament, who proposed to exempt from criminal liability of high -ranking officials who made political decisions while working in government agencies. Oppositionists said that the current power, led by President Viktor Yanukovych, is using article 365 of the Criminal Code to persecute former high -ranking officials for political reasons.

Recall that Yulia Tymoshenko is the accused in a criminal case. He was arrested on August 5 on charges of exceeding official powers when concluding gas contracts with Russia in 2009. The ex-Prime Minister categorically rejects the accusations against him and considers the process to be political. Tymoshenko's associates believed that in the case of amendments to the Criminal Code, the ex-Prime Minister could be released right in the courtroom.

The state prosecution demanded that Tymoshenko were sentenced to seven years in prison. The court plans to begin the announcement of the sentence on October 11.