Why is Amirov’s verdict scary for Kadyrov? In Chechnya, their mosque is being demolished. Dzhabraila Yamadayev: brother is sure that because of the family’s conflict with Kadyrov
Said Amirov was sentenced to life imprisonment. Other defendants in the case received from 10 to 20 years in a maximum security colony. However, the court's decision is not only an end to the case of the once all-powerful mayor of Makhachkala Amirov. This is a signal to the entire North Caucasus.
"Caucasian Knot" publishes information about the criminal prosecution of Amirov on the thematic page "Said Amirov: from the mayor's office to the pre-trial detention center"
Said Amirov was called second after Ramzan Kadyrov in terms of influence in the North Caucasus. Moscow's powerful back, its own empire and control over abundant cash flows made it possible to mobilize thousands of supporters - its positions seemed invulnerable. But all this did not save the second man in the Caucasus from arrest and a second sentence.
"Caucasian Knot" conducted video reports from the courtroom, Amirov looked like this:
For the elites, Amirov’s case has become a convincing example that there are no untouchables in the region (or almost none), and neither money, nor connections, nor awards, nor an appeal to previous merits can save them from a harsh sentence.
The verdict in Amirov’s case means the reshaping of his empire and his final elimination from the political life of the republic. The arrest and trial were the result of the actions of the federal government, and not the result of the struggle of local clans. However, the process of purge of the Dagestan elite did not end with the case of Said Amirov.
The “Caucasian Knot” compiled a report on the problems of 29 other prominent officials of Dagestan “Cleansing power in Abdulatipov’s style”
The court's decision in Amirov's case is an obvious signal that anyone can stand trial, anyone can be found guilty, and there are no exceptions.
Amirov was considered an opponent of Kadyrov. With the development of the Amirov case, it seemed that Kadyrov's position had strengthened. The victim in Amirov’s first case was the head of the Republican Pension Fund, Sagid Murtazaliev, a constant opponent and rival of the former mayor of Makhachkala. Kadyrov called Sagid Murtazaliev his brother.
However, during the second trial of Amirov, Murtazaliev himself became a defendant in the case of financing terrorism and preparing for murder.
The Amirov case may turn out to be only part of a larger story about the confrontation between Kadyrov and the federal security forces.
The reshaping of the political, security, and economic landscape of Dagestan and the entire North Caucasus continues. There are fewer and fewer influential figures who took leading roles and seemed irreplaceable.
Among Kadyrov’s jokes, which were perceived as threats, the phrase: “Whoever does not understand, will understand” became a meme. The second verdict in the Amirov case should show the head of Chechnya that his jokes may have more meaning than he put into them.
This could provoke a local armed conflict... The mayor of Makhachkala, Said Amirov, was arrested on suspicion of murdering an investigator during a special operation carried out by security forces. On June 1, in the center of Dagestan, a helicopter took off from the main square and took the “unsinkable” mayor to Moscow... In order for the arrest to take place, the area of Amirov’s house was blocked by armored vehicles - from the outside it looked as if terrorists were being captured once again, a familiar scene residents of Makhachkala for a long time. The precautionary measures are explained by the incredible influence of the mayor, the power and status of Amirov, nicknamed “Bloody Roosevelt” (he is considered the second most influential person in the Caucasus after Ramzan Kadyrov), could provoke a local armed conflict... And precisely because Amirov’s weight in the political space of the Caucasus is incredible great, political scientists loudly claim that the decision to arrest him could only have been made in the Kremlin. This operation had been prepared for two years, but investigators had to speed up the timing of the final scene, as information appeared that Amirov was beginning to “remove” the weak links - those who could testify against him, since after the change of head of the region, the mayor felt that he was “over him.” The clouds are gathering." In addition, after the arrest of his nephew, Deputy Mayor of Kaspiysk Yusup Dzhaparov, which occurred the day before, Amirov apparently decided that it was time for him to cover his tracks. They decided to carry out the operation only after they captured the leader of the “Makhachkala bandit group” Sirazhudin Guchuchaliev, then the names of both the accomplices and the organizers of the gangster actions were revealed, and this entailed not only the arrest of the nephew - the FSB officers came for the uncle. Moreover, the events described occurred almost immediately after the meeting of the acting head of the region Ramazan Abdulatipov (Putin called on his predecessor to work in Moscow) with the president, where the head of the region promised to engage in “cleansing the region of corruption,” but Abdulatipov, according to media reports, allegedly I didn’t know because of the degree of its secrecy. At 14:00, FSB special forces officers surrounded the house of Said Amirov, the timing was not chosen by chance - the whole of Makhachkala, as well as the mayor, were watching the Anzhi - CSKA football match, which can explain the decrease in vigilance of Amirov’s security (to their regret, Anzhi also lost , and the boss was taken away without noise). After the FSB officers, an Investigative Committee officer entered the mayor’s house, arrested Amirov, and took his belongings and documents with him for inquiry. One of the special forces carried the mayor out of the house in his arms, since the mayor cannot move on his own, Amirov was driven in an armored Land Cruiser to the helicopter - the operation took place without a single shot being fired. That day, in addition to Said Amirov, security forces arrested about 10 more suspected of complicity in the mayor’s crimes. The Basmanny City Court authorized the arrest of the head of the capital of Dagestan, Said Amirov, until August 1, 2013; the suspect himself stated that this was a politically fabricated case and that it had no prospects. Amirov cannot be in prison, according to him, because he needs medical supervision - he is sick with hepatitis, as reported in the media, other sources indicate that the defendant referred to diabetes, in which the patient needs to be constantly given injections, and from stress Amirov's blood sugar levels will rise. In any case, Amirov’s relatives brought medical records, judging by which it is generally unclear how the mayor is still alive. By the way, numerous enemies of the mayor are probably also asking this question - the “Dagestan Roosevelt” survived 15 assassination attempts, which, of course, undermined his health (although it is unlikely that he was deliberately infected with diabetes), but the politician moves around in a wheelchair, which is why they compared Makhachkala mayor and American president. But connections with the United States do not end with the nickname - experts have repeatedly commented that Amirov is a protégé of the West. “Said Amirov, on the one hand, is closely connected with the highest circle of cosmopolitan liberals in the Russian establishment, in particular with Chubais. On the other hand, he was supported by Israel, which has extensive interests in the North Caucasus. Said Amirov is the axis of the pro-Israel lobby. In this regard, he enjoyed the attention and support of leading political figures in the United States and the EU,” commented the head of the Islamic Committee of Russia, Heydar Dzhemal, on Amirov’s arrest. There is debate in the blogosphere about whether Amirov will serve time in prison not only on the main charge, but also on a dozen other ongoing cases. Many believe that in this way Amirov was simply asked to “leave”, since he did not leave in an amicable way, and after some time Amirov will be released for health reasons, but he will no longer be able to hold his post and will leave the country. Thus, Amirov’s lawyer Mark Kruter, who once defended thief in law Vyacheslav Ivankov (Yaponchik), has already opposed the arrest, citing the state of his client’s health and threatening a repetition of Magnitsky’s fate. But investigators do not want to release Said Amirov from custody, since there is a high probability that he will begin to remove and intimidate the participants in the process, and destroy material evidence. In recent months, public attention has also begun to focus on financial processes in the republic - apparently, Dagestan has turned into a large “laundering” and “laundry” for illegal money, as indicated by the control authorities. Recent events make us think - a few months ago, employees of the Karat-1 private security company were arrested at the Moscow airport, the operation was carried out by law enforcement officers - federal and republican - together with special services, it ended with the arrest of "black collectors" who tried to transport more than 400 million rubles . under the guise of paper products. The head of the private security company, Magomedrasul Karatov, was arrested in early April. Investigators believe that “black collectors” laundered over 100 billion rubles. Who did this money belong to? Information that Amirov had contacts with Karatov received wide publicity. Now an unscheduled inspection of banks has begun in Dagestan, and before that, on May 27, the chairman of the National Bank of Dagestan resigned. In recent months, for various reasons, the Dagestan Transenergobank, as well as Derbent-Credit, Trust Bank and Express Bank have been deprived of their license. More than a dozen North Caucasian banks involved in large-scale cash-out operations are being inspected. For example, through Transenergobank, according to the report, 27 billion rubles were cashed out over the nine months of 2012, media reports. By the way, in terms of the number of banks, Dagestan ranks third in Russia, only Moscow and St. Petersburg are ahead of it. It was under Amirov that financial turnover increased 15 times, and multi-billion dollar projects began to be implemented in the city, attracting investors from other countries. Let us recall that Said Amirov was appointed deputy chairman of the government of the republic, and soon became a deputy of the Makhachkala City Council and the Supreme Council of the Dagestan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic back in the 90s. In 1998, he won the election of the head of the administration of Makhachkala, Amirov was re-elected to the post of mayor in 2002, 2006 and 2010. He was one of the founders of the Makhachkala branch of the United Russia party. In 2012, he once again headed the local branch of the party. That is why the blow to Amirov is called a blow to Prime Minister Medvedev’s party, a serious signal to the elites. Until the court proves the guilt of the party member and a guilty verdict appears, Amirov will not be expelled from the party, the United Russia Central Election Commission said. Now Amirov is suspected not only in connection with terrorist militants, illegal money trafficking and the murder of competitors. The Investigative Committee suspects that Said Amirov was directly related to the Kolkhoznik gang, organized by the prosecutor of the city of Kaspiysk; most of the gang members have already been detained, among them there are security forces and high-ranking officials. The group may be involved in the 2011 murder of the head of the Vodokanal Municipal Unitary Enterprise of Kaspiysk, Magomedgadzhi Aliyev, for which the mayor faces life imprisonment. Islamic scholar Roman Silantiev commented on Amirov’s arrest: “This is a positive trend, all my friends in Dagestan directly said that this is the main leader of organized crime in Dagestan, a person who has connections with the terrorist underground, that is, he represents the worst option for turning bandits into terrorists, a mixture crime and Wahhabism. At the same time, he positions himself on the contrary, as a fighter against Wahhabism and a guardian of Russian interests. I hear this from many people, people have made serious arguments, it seems to me that they are right, and the events mark a full-scale attack on this unnatural alliance in power: terrorists and criminals. They support each other, feed each other, and if this alliance is not destroyed, then, of course, a terrorist threat is likely. In general, an affectionate calf of two queens sucks, of course, a person could do one thing in public, but in reality create another - he tried to be friends with everyone, but in fact he had a completely clear position. He destroyed all his competitors and actively attracted terrorists to eliminate them; against this background, friendship with the EU and with anyone else does not matter. As for the arrest, it seems to me that there was such a sanction from the Kremlin, especially since there has been a noticeable tightening in the fight against terrorists recently, especially in Dagestan, and the change of the head of this republic gives hope that, after all, the authorities have taken the matter seriously this problem and began to fight harshly with those who brought this republic to this state. I hope the cleanup has begun. He intimidated many people, he intimidated them quite strongly - many of his opponents actually died. But after he was put in prison, more and more witnesses are being collected against him, and dozens of cases will be filed against him. He lost his “untouchable” status, and I think there will be much more people willing to testify against him than before... Based on materials from the site
For a year after Boris Nemtsov was killed on the Moskvoretsky Bridge, Ilya Yashin and his team worked on a report that was dedicated to Ramzan Kadyrov and how his power had gone too far. The announcement was scheduled for February 23, but due to a technical error, the Open Russia website appeared online earlier. The Head of the Chechen Republic himself took advantage of this chance and published Yashin’s report on all his social networks. The hero of this text himself has already given his assessment of the work of the political activist:
I express my attitude towards this one-man theater by replicating this work. We don’t know what kind of chatter there will be, but what is written contains nothing but chatter)))Ramzan Kadyrov
According to many Russian oppositionists, it was the head of Chechnya who was involved in the murder of Boris Nemtsov, despite the fact that the investigation has already closed the case and delivered its verdict. Ilya Yashin has collected a large amount of information regarding the activities of the Kadyrovs for almost 20 years. He also traveled to Chechnya to talk with local residents, who gave their assessment of the activities of Ramzan Kadyrov.
Ilya Yashin himself set the following goals and objectives for his report:
This report presents an analysis of how a dangerous criminal group consistently formed on Russian territory, essentially replacing the Chechen state. This is the story of how Ramzan Kadyrov, largely copying the political style of Vladimir Putin, but with the addition of national and religious specifics, became a key and essentially uncontrollable figure in Russian politics. The purpose of the report is to open the eyes of Russian society to the fact that Ramzan Kadyrov, with the connivance of the country’s leadership and intelligence services, has become a figure posing a threat to Russia’s national security.Ilya Yashin
The report “Kadyrov - National Security of Russia” begins with the period of the Chechen war and ends with the current state of things, namely with the fact that the Chechens are fighting on the side of ISIS. The text raises topics that relate to the murder of Anna Politkovskaya and Boris Nemtsov. Politkovskaya is a famous Russian journalist who was killed in the entrance of her house. She was known for her critical statements against the Chechen leader, and also covered events in the Chechen War. The report talks about ethnic cleansing and genocide of Russians that occurred in the late 90s; about how Ramzan’s father, Akhmat Kadyrov, was killed; on the appointment of the current head to his post; about Kadyrov’s large private army, which he demonstrated more than once even at the Akhmat Arena stadium in Grozny’s Terek; about the large subsidies that have been pouring into Chechnya in an endless stream for many years; about the family ties that connect Kadyrov with politicians and businessmen.
A large chapter is devoted to national security, which recalls the conflict between Russian intelligence services and local security forces during an operation to capture a criminal, where Razman Kadyrov uttered a phrase that surprised and tensed many:
I officially declare: if he appears on your territory without your knowledge, it does not matter whether he is a Muscovite or a Stavropol resident, open fire to kill.Ramzan Kadyrov
Ilya Yashin attempted a personal meeting with Ramzan Akhmatovich and sent him a letter, to which he never received an answer. However, the oppositionist published his questions to the head of the republic in a report.
Ilya Yashin assesses the current situation in Chechnya as follows:
Few people notice that our local Islamic state has formed on Russian territory in recent years. The isolated “Chechen caliphate” lives by its own traditions and laws, while regularly receiving billions of dollars in subsidies from the Russian budget. The head of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov, is basking in luxury, implementing a policy of prioritizing certain Sharia norms over Russian laws, and is increasing his military power. Militants from Chechnya carry out terrorist attacks against Kadyrov’s opponents both in Moscow and outside Russia.Ramzan Kadyrov’s conflict with the leadership of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation has become public.
The Chechen leader is deliberately escalating the situation, and the confrontation with the security forces is connected with the investigation into the Nemtsov case, experts say.
Shoot to kill
At the end of last week, the conflict between the head of the Chechen Republic Ramzan Kadyrov and the leadership of two law enforcement agencies at once - the Investigative Committee of Russia and the Ministry of Internal Affairs - resulted in public controversy. The mutual exchange of views began with Kadyrov’s harsh public reaction to the Stavropol police operation in Chechnya, which was not coordinated with his Chechen colleagues, during which a resident of the republic was killed. “If he appears on your territory without your knowledge, it doesn’t matter whether he is a Muscovite or a Stavropol resident - open fire to kill,” Kadyrov said on Wednesday at a meeting on the security problems of the republic with local security officials. There he also gave a personal instruction to all heads of local bodies of the FSB, Investigative Committee and the Ministry of Internal Affairs to punish the perpetrators.
On Thursday, in a special statement, the Ministry of Internal Affairs confirmed that its colleagues were completely right and called Kadyrov’s words “unacceptable.” To this, Kadyrov suggested that Minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev was misled by his subordinates, and the Chechen security forces announced the initiation of a criminal case against their colleagues from Stavropol (under Article 286 of the Criminal Code on abuse of power). On Friday evening, the chairman of the Investigative Committee, Alexander Bastrykin, intervened in the situation and, by personal decision, canceled the initiation of a case against the police.
In turn, Kadyrov on Saturday called on Bastrykin to personally explain to the relatives of the person killed during the special operation and to all residents of Chechnya what “the true reasons for the cancellation of the case are, to tell what violations were committed when it was initiated, why there is no need to conduct an inspection if a person died.”
On Saturday, on behalf of the leadership of the Investigative Committee, investigators from the North Caucasus Federal District arrived in Chechnya to check the circumstances of the incident. “I would like to emphasize that the inspection will be carried out objectively, absolutely impartially and in strict accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation,” assured ICR representative Vladimir Markin.
RBC's interlocutor, close to the leadership of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, assures that the department continues to insist on its version of events and fully supports Bastrykin's decision to drop the case against the police.
What happened in Grozny
On Sunday, April 19, police from the Stavropol Territory tried to detain in Grozny a resident of Chechnya, Dzhambulat Dadaev, who was wanted for shooting at a rival businessman in Stavropol. The Ministry of Internal Affairs claims that the Stavropol police officers turned to their colleagues in the Criminal Investigation Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Chechen Republic and informed them about the purpose of their business trip. The head of the Chechen criminal investigation department and the Chechen Minister of Internal Affairs deny this fact.
According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, during the arrest, Dadaev tried to escape in his car, while ramming the transport of employees who arrived in Grozny. Trying to stop the car, the police opened fire and mortally wounded Dadaev.
Chechen riot police arrived at the scene and surrounded the Stavropol security forces. According to them, the police from Stavropol were wearing masks and refused to show documents. The operatives, surrounded by Chechens, in turn, turned for help to employees of the temporary operational group of bodies and units of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs, which since 2000 has been based in Khankala and is under federal subordination. After this they managed to leave Chechnya.
Connection to the Nemtsov case
Kadyrov’s position logically follows from the contradictions that emerged during the investigation into the murder of Boris Nemtsov, says Vadim Prokhorov, a lawyer for the family of the deceased. “I can state that in Chechnya the investigation, despite the highest level, faced obvious obstacles. Why do you think [Ruslan] Geremeev has not yet been interrogated? If the leader of one region considers himself more equal than others, sooner or later this should have resulted in a conflict with the security forces,” says Prokhorov.
Geremeev’s identity surfaced in the Nemtsov murder case after the testimony of the main accused - his colleague in the Sever battalion Zaur Dadaev - and his alleged accomplice, ex-employee of the Shelkovsky district police department Temirlan Eskerkhanov. The testimony says that Dadaev lived in the Moscow apartment of the Geremeevs, received a pistol and a car for the crime from a man named Rusik from Geremeev’s entourage. Dadaev's lawyer, in an interview with RBC, stated that his client really lived in Geremeev's apartment, but Dadaev was forced to testify against Geremeev under torture. As a result, according to the defense lawyer, Dadaev told the investigators the “mythical” name Rusik.
Novaya Gazeta called Geremeev a relative of State Duma deputy from Chechnya Adam Delimkhanov and senator from the republic Suleiman Geremeev, who are close to Kadyrov. According to the publication, back in the first half of March, the FSB Directorate for the Chechen Republic received instructions from Moscow to detain Ruslan Geremeev and another suspect, Ruslan M., and bring them in for questioning. The order of the investigation has not yet been carried out. The secret services also do not know the reliable whereabouts of Geremeev. It is possible that he is still in the Chechen village of Dzhalka, the ancestral village of deputy Delimkhanov, but he could have left Russia through the international airport in Grozny, using a fake passport to leave, Novaya Gazeta wrote.
Refuge with Kadyrov
In May 2013, Deputy Prime Minister and curator of the Skolkovo Foundation Vladislav Surkov criticized the Investigative Committee after the department opened several cases of corruption in the foundation. “The energy with which the Investigative Committee publishes its assumptions gives ordinary people the feeling that crimes have been committed. But that's just SK's energy. Let them prove that these people are guilty of something, we’ll see if they prove it or not,” Surkov said while in London.
In response, the official representative of the Investigative Committee, Vladimir Markin, published an article in the Izvestia newspaper, in which he stated that the so-called effective managers and their “curators” had “started the fashion” of complaining to the West about the Investigative Committee accusing their colleagues of embezzlement. Surkov called Markin’s article “graphomania” and refused to comment on it.
A few days later, Surkov left his post in the government, and at the end of the month, at the invitation of Kadyrov, he came to Chechnya. “He is my adopted brother and will remain so forever. What kind of man am I if I refuse my brother after he is fired? Even if my friendship with Surkov hurts me, I will be proud of our relationship,” Kadyrov said then and invited Surkov to work in the republic.
RBC's interlocutor, close to the investigative team in the Nemtsov case, confirmed the investigation's intentions to interrogate and detain Geremeev, as well as another defendant who previously appeared in the case materials under the name Rusik, however, according to the source, the investigation is facing serious opposition on the territory of Chechnya.
On Friday, Adam Delimkhanov and Suleiman Geremeev, who had previously remained silent regarding the situation surrounding Nemtsov’s murder, spoke out about the conflict between the Chechen leader and the security forces. They assessed the coverage of the situation in the press as an attempt by certain Russian media to use Kadyrov’s “emotional and humanly predictable reaction” to “illegal and provocative actions of Interior Ministry employees” to undermine political stability in Russia.
An interlocutor at the Ministry of Internal Affairs drew RBC's attention to the Channel One story: the police regarded it as support for her position. On Friday, in the evening news release in connection with this conflict, correspondents recalled the attempt by Chechen security forces in Moscow to detain Akhmat Kadyrov’s former security guard, Movladi Baysarov, in 2006; he was shot dead on Leninsky Prospekt. “Then many questions arose about the actions of the Chechen security forces. But the criminal case was soon closed,” the author of the story emphasized. Former Deputy Prime Minister of Chechnya Bislan Gantamirov and State Duma deputy Mikhail Markelov announced the possible involvement of then Deputy Prime Minister of Chechnya Adam Delimkhanov in the death of Baysarov.
Putin's silence
Kadyrov’s latest statements to the security forces look like a game of aggravation, says Grigory Shvedov, editor-in-chief of the Caucasian Knot: “Kadyrov certainly feels a threat to his position, this is a well-thought-out strategic communication with the federal center.”
Presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov, in response to requests from journalists to comment on Kadyrov’s polemics with the Ministry of Internal Affairs, recalled that the internal affairs bodies of Chechnya are subordinate to the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs. “There is nothing to comment on in this case,” Peskov emphasized.
The critical statements of the head of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov, addressed to the mayor of Khasavyurt, Saygidpasha Umakhanov, cannot be explained by the economic interests of the Chechen leadership related to the markets of Khasavyurt, experts interviewed by the Caucasian Knot believe. Umakhanov will try to become politically active and consolidate the forces close to him, notes Mairbek Agayev, editor-in-chief of the weekly Chernovik. The conflict flared up against the backdrop of unresolved problems in the restoration of the Aukhovsky district, notes political scientist Magomed Magomedov.
As the "Caucasian Knot" reported, on April 23, Ramzan Kadyrov, during a meeting of the board of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Chechnya, announced the connections of Saygidpasha Umakhanov with the bandit underground. According to Kadyrov, Umakhanov’s brother financed the Dagestan armed underground, and his nephew is the current emir. Saigidpasha Umakhanov’s official response, released on April 24, states that his “religious and moral convictions” do not allow him to enter into a dispute with Kadyrov, since he was a close friend of the first president of Chechnya, Akhmat Kadyrov.
There is an opinion among residents of Chechnya that the origins of the conflict may be the economic claims of the Chechen leadership to the Khasavyurt markets, through which a large amount of money flows. “Perhaps here lies the root of the problems. Our authorities want to return the wholesale trade center in the North Caucasus to the republic. Moreover, we must not forget that a large number of ethnic Chechens-Akkins live in the Khasavyurt region,” a representative previously told the “Caucasian Knot” correspondent Chechen public organization Imran.
Mairbek Agayev: the head of Dagestan can take steps to get closer to Umakhanov
There are no economic reasons for the confrontation between Kadyrov and Umakhanov, says Mairbek Agayev, editor-in-chief of the Dagestan weekly Chernovik.
There are about 50 markets in Khasavyurt, where residents of Chechnya are also involved, most of all as buyers, Agaev noted, adding that the cheapness of many goods in the markets may be due to the fact that some of it is brought and sold bypassing taxes, according to gray schemes. At the same time, law enforcement officers have repeatedly voiced information “that money is being laundered through the markets of Khasavyurt to support militants.”
According to Agayev, Saygidpasha Umakhanov will now try to become politically active and consolidate the forces close to him. “In recent years, Umakhanov has distanced himself from big politics. Now, taking into account recent events, he can make an attempt to collect his political assets,” Mairbek Agayev told the “Caucasian Knot” correspondent.
As the chief editor of Chernovik believes, there will most likely not be a direct reaction from the leadership of Dagestan to Kadyrov’s statement, but the head of Dagestan will most likely take steps to get closer to Umakhanov. “It seems to me that the response to Kadyrov by the leadership of Dagestan will be made through the Kremlin, through some official at the federal level,” Agayev said.
Let us note that on April 16, for the first time in a long time, a meeting was held between the head of Dagestan Ramazan Abdulatipov and the mayor of Khasavyurt Saygidpasha Umakhanov. According to the press service of the head of the republic, issues “related to the socio-economic development of the municipality in 2013” were discussed. As Umakhanov stated, city budget revenues in 2013 amounted to 1,482.69 million rubles, which is 30% more than in 2012. The local budget received tax and non-tax revenues in the amount of 221.6 million rubles, or 105% of the established target.
“Relations between Kadyrov and Umakhanov have worsened against the backdrop of problems in the restoration of the Aukhovsky district”
There is no economic basis in the conflict between Ramzan Kadyrov and Saygidpasha Umakhanov, says Dagestani political scientist Magomed Magomedov.
“It is unclear what Kadyrov was guided by when making such a statement. I believe that in the current situation there are no economic interests, especially those relating to the Khasavyurt markets. Relations between Kadyrov and Umakhanov could have worsened against the backdrop of unresolved problems in the restoration of the Aukhovsky district, the lack of its legal status, the lack of infrastructure Akkin Chechens living in the regions of Dagestan bordering Chechnya,” Magomedov told the “Caucasian Knot” correspondent.
The Aukhovsky district, in which Akkin Chechens lived compactly, was liquidated in 1944 after Operation Lentil. In the northwestern part of the district, the Novolaksky district was formed, this part was inhabited by Laks from the mountainous part of Dagestan, and the southeastern part of the district was transferred to the neighboring Kazbekovsky district along with two settlements Yurt-Aukh and Aktash-Aukh and populated by Avars from a neighboring village. Thirteen years later, in 1957, the Akkin Chechens, like the rest of the deported Vainakh peoples, were allowed to return to their historical homeland. At the same time, it was decided to leave the Laks and Avars resettled there on the lands of the former Aukhovsky district, and the returning Akkins were given free lands to settle in the Khasavyurt district, directly adjacent to their former places of residence.
Kisriev: Khasavyurt market has turned into the largest shopping center in the region
At the moment, the Khasavyurt market (more precisely, markets) has turned into the largest shopping center in the region, noted Enver Kisriev, head of the Center for the Caucasus and Civilization and Regional Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences. “It is in Khasavyurt that residents of Chechnya and Northern Dagestan purchase goods. Goods are delivered there both from Russia and from abroad - from Turkey, both directly and through intermediaries,” Enver Kisriev told the “Caucasian Knot” correspondent.
According to the expert, one of the reasons for the popularity of the Khasavyurt market is its cheapness. “Of course, I cannot name the exact price ratio, but the general impression is that in Khasavyurt prices are significantly lower than in Makhachkala,” he said.
Tax authorities previously noted low tax collection in the Khasavyurt markets
