MOSCOW, December 20 (RAPSI) – A court ruling on detention of a leader of the NGO For Human Rights Lev Ponomarev should not be open to question, Russian President Vladimir Putin told journalists during his annual press conference on Thursday.

Moscow’s Tverskoy District Court detained Ponomarev for his public calls for participation in an unauthorized rally in Moscow, Putin said. “I do not want to cast doubt on court rulings,” the President added.

On December 5, Moscow’s Tverskoy District Court detained Ponomarev for 25 days. The human rights campaigner was found guilty of repeated violation of the order of public events organization. The court’s press service did not disclose the details of the committed offence. However, various media reported that Ponomarev had allegedly called for participation in an unauthorized rally on October 28 near the Federal Security Service’s building.