Ruslan Kasbulatov, the former speaker of the Russian parliament, has died at the age of 80, Russian news agencies have reported. He was one of the key figures in the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis when tanks shelled the parliament.
Kasbulatov, born in Grozny, Chechnya, was a researcher for many years until he was elected speaker of the parliament in October 1991. He retained this function after the collapse of the Soviet Union at the end of the year. Initially, he was an ally of the then President of the Russian Federation, Boris Yeltsin, but the two politicians soon clashed against the background of the government’s far-reaching economic reforms, which led to a sharp decline in living standards. and the dispute about eligibility.
At the end of September 1993, Yeltsin announced the dissolution of parliament. The latter, in response, declared the action void and appointed his own acting president.
Ruslan KasbulatovFrédéric Lenghein/Gamma-Rabo via Getty Images
On October 4, 1993, after bloody clashes between Yeltsin’s supporters and opponents in Moscow, Russian troops shelled the White House, the building of the Russian Parliament, set fire to the upper floors, and then captured it.
Yeltsin soon consolidated his power with several decrees, cementing a presidential form of government. Although Kasbulatov and his close associates were arrested and accused of organizing mass riots, the new parliament granted them amnesty in February 1994.
Kasbulatov returned to education and taught economics in Moscow.
Main photo source: Frédéric Lenghein/Gamma-Rabo via Getty Images