MOSCOW, March 9 (RAPSI) – Russian opposition activist and accomplice of Aleksey Navalny, Leonid Volkov, filed a complaint with the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) over the sentence he had received for obstruction of journalists’ activity, Vedomosti newspaper reported Thursday.

Volkov in his application insists that Article 6 (Right to a fair trial) and Article 18 (Limitation on use of restrictions of rights) of the European Convention on Human Rights have been violated.

The activist believes that his trial was politically motivated, the newspaper writes citing his lawyer Irina Khrunova.

According to investigators, in July 2015, Volkov hindered video recording by LifeNews journalists in Novosibirsk. He also forced one of the journalists to abandon distribution of information. It has been stated that the activist allegedly used violence against a LifeNews reporter and broke his microphone.

In August 2016, a court in Novosibirsk found Volkov guilty of obstructing journalists’ activity and imposed a 30,000-ruble fine ($515) on him. In late October, the sentence was upheld.