MOSCOW, December 21 - RAPSI. The Supreme Court on January 16 will hold preliminary hearings for former State Duma Deputy Gennady Gudkov's appeal of the loss of his parliamentary seat, his attorney Vadim Prokhorov told the Russian Legal Information Agency (RAPSI/rapsinews.com) Friday.

In mid-September, the Duma stripped Gudkov of his mandate after the investigative authorities accused him of engaging in commercial activities in violation of Russian law.

According to Russian law, deputies are not allowed to engage in business while in office.

Earlier, the Duma Commission for Control Over the Credibility of State Deputy Incomes and Expenses confirmed that Gudkov was engaged in various business activities.
After looking into the materials provided by the Investigative Committee, the commission concluded that there was sufficient evidence to prove that he had broken the law and to strip him of his mandate.

Previously, Alexander Shchukin, the head of the Investigative Committee's Investigative Department, said that Gudkov was involved in managing a construction company in Bulgaria.

In June, it was revealed that investigators were carrying out an inspection upon the application of Bulgarian citizen Ivaylo Zartov on Gudkov's purported investments in a local firm and his alleged tax evasion in Russia.

However, Gudkov stated at the time that Zartov had previous convictions in the Czech Republic and Bulgaria and was just trying to settle accounts with him.

Additionally, the Interior Ministry looked into security businesses owned by the Gudkov family and found that a number of violations have been committed there as well. Meanwhile, Gudkov believes the accusations are connected with his status in the political opposition.