About the 20 personalities of Russian culture and journalism they are calling on the authorities to hand over his body Alexei Navalny to his family, a day after his mother alleged he was being blackmailed into secretly burying the Russian opposition leader who died under suspicious circumstances last week in his Arctic prison.

Alexei Navalny’s anti-corruption team broadcast these public appeals on social media from Nobel Peace Prize-winning journalist Dmitry Muratov, director Andrei Zvyagintsev, writer Viktor Senderovich, activist from the band Pussy Riot, among others. Nadezhda Tolokonnikova.

“It is a shame to say this in a country that is still considered Christian, but give Lyudmila Ivanovna her son,” said Dmitry Muratov, director of the independent Novaïa Gazeta.

“Putin was afraid of Navalny for many years during his life. And Putin is afraid of Navalny after his death – after he killed Navalny, he is still afraid of him,” says Viktor Senderovich, who has been declared a “foreign agent” by Moscow for his criticism of the attack on Ukraine.

Navalny’s team accuses Russian authorities of killing him in prison and is now trying to block his public funeral to avoid demonstrations of support by Russian citizens.

Hundreds of people were arrested by Russian police last week paying tribute to Putin’s arch-rival.