SVO members complained to Melikov about the freeze on construction of their homes.

Military personnel from Dagestan, located in a special operation zone in Ukraine, recorded a video message to the head of the republic, Sergei Melikov, demanding the resumption of construction on their homes and the return of money to those affected by the developer's actions.

As reported by Kavkazsky Uzel, at the end of December 2025, military personnel from Dagestan recorded a video message to Sergei Melikov in a special operation zone in Ukraine asking for assistance in bringing gas to a house in Izberbash.

The video message from participants in the military operation in Ukraine to Sergei Melikov, the head of Dagestan, and Dzhambulat Salavov, the head of Makhachkala, was posted on the Telegram channel "Tema Dagestana," which has over 18,000 subscribers. By 5:30 a.m. Moscow time, the video had garnered over 800 views.

The video shows three men in camouflage and balaclavas, armed with automatic weapons, against the backdrop of a snow-covered field. One of them reads a text, addressing officials.

"Those who carry out combat missions, risking their lives, are addressing you. They are trying to take our homes from our families. Thousands of Dagestan families, including us and our comrades, invested their hard-earned money, believing in new housing. Billions have been collected, but construction has stalled. People have been deceived for years," the soldier addresses the officials, naming a construction company from Makhachkala and the name of its director.

According to the military, instances of the sale of a single apartment to 3,000 families have already been uncovered. "We're not just thinking about combat missions here; we're thinking about our children and wives, who are waiting for us and waiting for the home they were promised. Sort this situation out and help the thousands of defrauded families. We ask you to stop these people who feel they can get away with it. No inspection wants to investigate them for obvious reasons," the military concluded.

In mid-December 2025, the Telegram channel "Tema Dagestana" published a complaint from shareholders of the construction company AR Group, who appealed to the country's president and the head of Dagestan for assistance.

According to the shareholders, AR Group announced the construction of more than 10 projects, but only one building was completed during the entire period. The remaining projects are abandoned: some buildings are frozen at the 3rd to 5th floor level, some plots are just excavation pits, and some land has been reclaimed. Construction work has been stalled for over a year, despite promises to resume after December 24. Meanwhile, the company's cash register is empty, and those who applied for refunds for their apartments have either stopped receiving payments entirely or are receiving them in increments of 5,000, 10,000, or 15,000 rubles, which cannot be considered a real refund.

The defrauded residents emphasized that the total debt to shareholders, according to their estimates, is 6-7 billion rubles. Among the victims are families with children, SVO participants, large families, single mothers, pensioners, and people who invested their last savings in apartments.

"We ask you to personally intervene in the situation, help protect the rights of defrauded citizens, find a viable mechanism for restoring construction or ensuring full refunds to victims," they wrote.

As of 5:30 a.m. Moscow time, there are no comments on the website of the head and government of Dagestan regarding the appeal of the SVO participants to Melikov.

Previously, the "Caucasian Knot" reported that military personnel from Dagestan participating in the SVO periodically record video messages to the republic's authorities asking them to resolve various social and domestic issues. Specifically, on March 5, a video message with complaints about inflated prices for school meals and corruption in the purchase of housing for orphans was published by participants in a special military operation from the Tsuntinsky District of Dagestan. At the end of September, SVO participants complained to Melikov about the lack of sewage in Khasavyurt. Sergei Melikov promised in March that the actions of those attempting to manipulate participants in the military operation by sending them messages asking them to record a video message to the authorities will be harshly suppressed. Appeals from SVO participants in Dagestan to the authorities are prompted by numerous problems in the republic and remain one of the ways to gain the attention of officials. Despite Melikov's statement that combatants are recording messages as a result of "manipulation," he will have to respond to them, analysts noted.

During a direct line on November 27, Dagestan head Sergei Melikov sidestepped pressing issues and gave only vague, convenient answers to questions raised, residents of the republic noted, noting that they were expecting clarification about constant electricity and water outages, burning landfills, and rising prices for housing and communal services and transportation.