Universities and "special operation"

Is it legal to deduct students for participation in promotions?

From different ends of the country, there are reports that students are expelled or intended to expel for detention at rallies against “special operation” in Ukraine or for other forms of expression of their protest.

In St. Petersburg, a colleague in the Yabloko faction in the St. Petersburg Legislative Assembly, Alexander Shishlov, is engaged in the help of such students, believing attempts to expel absolutely illegal. We are sure that the argument we use and below will be useful to students from other cities, defending their rights to education.

In the orders known to us on deductions or their projects, they refer to allegedly violated by students who were brought to administrative responsibility for participating in protest actions, the requirements of the Federal Law “On Education”, charters of higher educational institutions or internal rules. Moreover,

Orders are signed even before the court decision on administrative punishment enters into force

(When the decision - for example, on a fine - was issued by the court of first instance and appealed, but there was no consideration in the second instance).

However, the protesting students do not allow any violations from the university, and that's why.

What is written in the Federal Law "On Education in the Russian Federation" No. 273-ФЗ dated December 29, 2012 (Article 43)? We quote:

From the law "On Education in the Russian Federation"

“Students are obliged to comply with the requirements of the charter of the organization engaged in educational activities, the rules of internal routine, the rules of residence in hostels and boarding schools and other local regulatory acts on the organization and implementation of educational activities. For non -fulfillment or violation of these documents, disciplinary measures can be applied to them - a comment, reprimand, deduction. ”

So, keywords in the quoted - "on issues of educational activity."

That is

Violations for which the disciplinary sanction can impose, up to deductions, should relate to the educational process, and only to it.

Everything that happens beyond and does not concern training - any everyday life of the student - universities are not regulated by any “local regulatory acts” of universities.

Accordingly, it is impossible to punish the student for committing outside the framework of training. Including if he did something that is supposed to be administrative punishment. And even if the court decision on this punishment entered into force: all the same, the deduction will be illegal.

Let us give a fact that our Yabloko colleague drew attention to, Professor Alexander Kobrinsky.

Students - as, however, both university teachers and other citizens - are taken from time to administrative responsibility.

For example, if they drive a car, they can receive fines for violating the rules of the road (for exceeding speed on the road, for incorrect parking, for driveways for prohibiting signs and so on and so on). And if they walk the streets, they can get a fine for crossing the street in the wrong place.

But no one ever threatened them with deductions from the university: no disciplinary sanctions for this are applied to them and can be applied.

And with the teachers, everything is exactly the same: in the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the fact of an administrative offense is absent in the list of grounds for terminating the employment contract at the initiative of the employer.

That is, it is impossible to dismiss the teacher for having received an administrative fine, including for participating in a rally.

Moreover, it is impossible to deprive a citizen of the right to education - according to the Constitution of the Russian Federation and federal laws - it is impossible not only in case of administrative responsibility, but even in case of conviction for committing a crime. According to paragraph 9 of Art. 80 of the Federal Law “On Education in the Russian Federation”, the convicts are allowed to receive higher education in absentee form. Moreover, Part 4 of Art. 108 of the Criminal Executive Code of the Russian Federation obliges the administration of the correctional institution to provide assistants in this assistance. It is clear that the mention of an absentee form of training is connected solely with the fact that convicts to imprisonment cannot physically attend classes in a full -time form.

Finally, we recall the fundamental legal principle “non bis in idem” (“not twice in the same thing”) - no one can be punished twice for one violation.

If the student has committed an administrative offense, he can receive an administrative punishment for him.

But he cannot be punished again - to receive a disciplinary sanction at the university for the same violation, up to deductions.

Alexander Shishlov and I sent the relevant letters to both the prosecutor of St. Petersburg and the rector of universities, from where they are trying to expel protesting students. We are waiting for answers.

Some of the students, as we know, intend to dispute this in court in case of deduction. And this is a completely right step: it is impossible to allow arbitrariness and lawlessness.

Last. St. Petersburg - and not only - students in recent weeks are involved in public actions in support of the “special operation”.

No one will detain them for this and does not fine them, and, of course, no one is trying to expel them. But for a different political position of repression, they follow immediately.