Akhmed Batlukhsky was released on personal recognizance.

The court released religious figure Akhmad Batlukhsky, accused of slandering the Muftiate of Dagestan, on the personal surety of a group of deputies.

As reported by the Caucasian Knot, on November 8, Akhmad (Akhmed) Batlukhsky (Magomedov) was detained at the Moscow airport on libel charges and sent to Makhachkala. On November 10, the court remanded him in custody for 29 days; on December 5, his arrest was extended for another month. Batlukhsky had a conflict with the Muftiate of Dagestan and had been living outside of Russia in recent years, according to journalist Zaur Gaziyev. On December 27, the court extended Batlukhsky's arrest for the third time. The head of the Public Monitoring Commission (PMC) of Dagestan, Shamil Khadulaev, reported that an expert analysis of the audio recording of the former imam found no slander against specific individuals.

The release of Akhmad Batlukhsky from pretrial detention was announced this afternoon by Shamil Khadulaev, the head of the Public Monitoring Commission (PMC) of Dagestan.

"Religious figure Akhmad Magomedov (Batlukhsky) was released today. A group of deputies acted as guarantors," he wrote on his Telegram channel.

Khadulaev did not specify whether any additional restrictions had been imposed on Batlukhsky in connection with the change in pretrial detention. He also did not name the guarantors.

According to Article 103 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation, personal surety is an independent preventive measure. "A personal surety consists of a written commitment from a trustworthy person that they guarantee the fulfillment of obligations by the suspect or accused," the article states.

This refers to the defendant's obligation to appear before the investigator and in court at the appointed time, and not to interfere with criminal proceedings. Article 103 of the Russian Criminal Procedure Code does not specify any other obligations or restrictions for the accused. "If the guarantor fails to fulfill their obligations, they may be subject to a fine of up to ten thousand rubles," the article notes.

The "Caucasian Knot" also reported that by early January, investigators had ordered a linguistic commission examination in the case of Akhmad Batlukhsky. Three previous examinations found no defamation in Batlukhsky's statements .