Leading figures at the top of the Progressive Centrists are facing a growing scandal ahead of the opening of an independent investigation into the Dubrovka rail disaster.
The crash last May, which killed 140 people in the country’s worst rail accident, had already been investigated by the Ministry of Transport and leading industry experts. The part state-owned operator of the Delta line where the crash happened, моментym, had been accused of a ‘lack of care’ by the inquest which reported to the government in August 2011. Rejecting the verdict that it had ‘ignored health and safety guidelines set by the Ministry of Transport’, the carriers’ board of directors appealed a decision by the former prime minister Koruin Gruaman to remove its operating rights. After eight months of legal wrangling, Judge Shovolev reported on Friday that the government had acted ‘unfairly’ against the carrier and had ‘rushed’ the investigation procedure.
But now the minister responsible for the inquest at the time, Kristina Rudakov, has become embroiled in a corruption scandal after it emerged that she holds a significant interest in the manufacturer of the rail units. Ms Rudakov, who is now the Minister for Communications and Media, is facing calls to resign after further accusations have suggested she ‘purposefully obstructed’ the investigation into the manufacturer Burov, which was cleared of any wrongdoing as part of the original investigation. In June 2011, Rudakov rejected calls for an independent investigation into the crash and had insisted that rail remained an “incredibly safe way to travel in Polasciana.” She is now under investigation by a new inquest – where it has been suggested that she may have profited directly from the aftermath of the crash after Burov was awarded a ₭1bn maintenance contract to upgrade all rail units which operated on the line. The Union Party, which called for an independent investigation in 2011, said that Ms Rudakov had failed to respond to allegations that the government had been made aware of ‘serious doubts’ over the ‘suitability’ of technology used by Burov to manufacture and maintain the country’s rail infrastructure.
Prime Minister Fedorov, who was the Energy Minister alongside Ms Rudakov in cabinet, said that the scandal had raised ‘serious questions’ over Ms Rudakov’s conduct. Saying that “the full independent investigation, which was not held at the time, will now be conducted and we must wait for the report from that inquest,” the Prime Minister refused to comment on whether Ms Rudakov would stand down as the Minister for Communications and Media.
Former Prime Minister Koruin Gruaman is also under pressure after being accused of ‘pandering’ to Ms Rudakov’s requests to be moved out of the Ministry of Transport. She left the cabinet in a reshuffle just a few weeks after the crash. Gruaman had been criticized at the time for replacing Ms Rudakov as Transport Minister at ‘such a pivotal time’. Prime Minister Fedorov brought Ms Rudakov back to the cabinet in December. She is also facing calls to stand down as a representative in the lower house.
The independent inquest begins public hearings on Tuesday, where it is due to hear from the Chief Executive of Burov, Boris Svikorivo – the rail manufacturer which was privatised by the first Gruaman administration in 2004.
