Stand-up comedian Idrak Mirzalizadeh, who made offensive jokes against Russians, may temporarily return to Russia.
This was announced by his lawyer Sergei Badamshin, a PolitNavigator correspondent reports.
“The Zamoskvoretsky court suspended the order of the Ministry of Internal Affairs on the undesirability of Idrak Mirzalizadeh’s stay in the Russian Federation until the court decision enters into legal force,” the lawyer said.
The stand-up comedian filed a lawsuit against the Ministry of Internal Affairs demanding to cancel the decision to ban him for life from entering Russia. According to the lawyer, the Zamoskvoretsky Court of Moscow will hold hearings on this claim on October 5.
Mirzalizadeh fled from Azerbaijan, and then from Belarus, to escape conscription into the army. In March 2021, he received a residence permit in Russia.
On July 30, Mirzalizadeh, on the air of the humorous program “Dispersal” on YouTube, said a phrase about the love of Russians for feces. He later claimed it was a joke.
The prosecutor's office opened an administrative case for inciting hatred and humiliation of human dignity. On August 9, the Tagansky District Court of Moscow sentenced the comedian to 10 days of administrative arrest. He served his time.
The stand-up comedian did not admit his guilt, but apologized to those whom he offended with the words from his speech.
The liberal public launched a campaign in defense of Mirzalizadeh. In particular, comedians from the Gazprom-owned TNT television channel took part in it.