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Rozsudek

FIRST SECTION

CASE OF BAGAUTDINOV AND OTHERS v. RUSSIA

(Applications nos. 48041/16 and 17 others –

see appended list)

JUDGMENT

STRASBOURG

23 March 2023

This judgment is final but it may be subject to editorial revision.


In the case of Bagautdinov and Others v. Russia,

The European Court of Human Rights (First Section), sitting as a Committee composed of:

Lətif Hüseynov, President,
Ivana Jelić,
Erik Wennerström, judges,

and Viktoriya Maradudina, Acting Deputy Section Registrar,

Having deliberated in private on 2 March 2023,

Delivers the following judgment, which was adopted on that date:

PROCEDURE

1. The case originated in applications against Russia lodged with the Court under Article 34 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (“the Convention”) on the various dates indicated in the appended table.

2. The Russian Government (“the Government”) were given notice of the applications.

THE FACTS

3. The list of applicants and the relevant details of the applications are set out in the appended table.

4. The applicants complained of the inadequate conditions of their detention. Some applicants also raised other complaints under the provisions of the Convention.

THE LAW

  1. JOINDER OF THE APPLICATIONS

5. Having regard to the similar subject matter of the applications, the Court finds it appropriate to examine them jointly in a single judgment.

  1. THE GOVERNMENT’S REQUEST TO STRIKE OUT APPLICATIONs Nos. 77574/17 and 1989/18 UNDER ARTICLE 37 § 1 OF THE CONVENTION

6. The Government submitted unilateral declarations in cases nos. 77574/17 and 1989/18 which did not offer a sufficient basis for finding that respect for human rights as defined in the Convention does not require the Court to continue examination of the cases (Article 37 § 1 in fine). The Court rejects the Government’s request to strike the applications out and will accordingly pursue its examination of the cases (see Tahsin Acar v. Turkey (preliminary objections) [GC], no.26307/95, § 75, ECHR 2003‑VI).

  1. ALLEGED VIOLATION OF ARTICLE 3 OF THE CONVENTION

7. The applicants complained principally of the inadequate conditions of their detention. They relied on Article 3 of the Convention.

8. The Court notes that the applicants were kept in detention in poor conditions. The details of the applicants’ detention are indicated in the appended table. The Court refers to the principles established in its caselaw regarding inadequate conditions of detention (see, for instance, Muršić v. Croatia [GC], no. 7334/13, 20 October 2016; Kudła v. Poland [GC], no. 30210/96, §§ 9094, ECHR 2000XI; and Ananyev and Others v. Russia, nos. 42525/07 and 60800/08, §§ 139165, 10 January 2012). It reiterates in particular that extreme lack of space in a prison cell or overcrowding weighs heavily as an aspect to be taken into account for the purpose of establishing whether the impugned detention conditions were “degrading” from the point of view of Article 3 and may disclose a violation, both alone or taken together with other shortcomings (see, amongst many authorities, Karalevičius v. Lithuania, no. 53254/99, §§ 36–40, 7 April 2005).

9. In the leading case of Sergey Babushkin v. Russia, no. 5993/08, 28 November 2013, the Court already found a violation in respect of issues similar to those in the present case.

10. Having examined all the material submitted to it, the Court has not found any fact or argument capable of persuading it to reach a different conclusion on the admissibility and merits of these complaints. Having regard to its case-law on the subject, the Court considers that in the instant case the applicants’ conditions of detention were inadequate.

11. These complaints are therefore admissible and disclose a breach of Article 3 of the Convention.

  1. OTHER ALLEGED VIOLATIONS UNDER WELL-ESTABLISHED CASE-LAW

12. The applicant in application no. 15724/18 submitted other complaints which also raised issues under the Convention, given the relevant wellestablished case-law of the Court (see the appended table). These complaints are not manifestly ill-founded within the meaning of Article 35 § 3 (a) of the Convention, nor are they inadmissible on any other ground. Accordingly, they must be declared admissible. Having examined all the material before it, the Court concludes that they also disclose a violation of the Convention in the light of its well-established case-law (see Gorlov and Others v. Russia, nos. 27057/06 and 2 others, 2 July 2019, concerning permanent video surveillance of detainees).

  1. REMAINING COMPLAINTS

13. In addition, the applicants also raised other complaints under various Articles of the Convention.

14. The Court has examined these applications and considers that, in the light of all the material in its possession and in so far as the matters complained of are within its competence, these complaints either do not meet the admissibility criteria set out in Articles 34 and 35 of the Convention or do not disclose any appearance of a violation of the rights and freedoms enshrined in the Convention or the Protocols thereto.

It follows that this part of the applications must be rejected in accordance with Article 35 § 4 of the Convention.

15. Finally, some applicants also complained under Article 13 of the Convention about the lack of remedies to complain about poor conditions of detention. The Court does not consider it necessary to examine the complaint separately (see, for similar approach most recently, Satyr and Others v. Russia [Committee], nos. 70387/16 and 14 others, 12 January 2023).

  1. APPLICATION OF ARTICLE 41 OF THE CONVENTION

16. Article 41 of the Convention provides:

“If the Court finds that there has been a violation of the Convention or the Protocols thereto, and if the internal law of the High Contracting Party concerned allows only partial reparation to be made, the Court shall, if necessary, afford just satisfaction to the injured party.”

17. Regard being had to the documents in its possession and to its caselaw (see, in particular, Sergey Babushkin v. Russia, (just satisfaction), no. 5993/08, 16 October 2014 and Mozharov and Others v. Russia, no. 16401/12 and 9 others, 21 March 2017), the Court considers it reasonable to award the sums indicated in the appended table.

FOR THESE REASONS, THE COURT, UNANIMOUSLY,

  1. Decides to join the applications;
  2. Rejects the Government’s request to strike applications nos. 77574/17 and 1989/18 out of its list of cases under Article 37 § 1 of the Convention on the basis of the unilateral declaration which they submitted;
  3. Declares the complaints concerning the inadequate conditions of detention after conviction and other complaints under well-established case-law of the Court, as set out in the appended table, admissible, finds that it is not necessary to examine separately the applicants’ complaints under Article 13 of the Convention concerning the lack of an effective domestic remedy to complain about poor detention conditions, and dismisses the remainder of applications as inadmissible;
  4. Holds that these complaints disclose a breach of Article 3 of the Convention concerning the inadequate conditions of detention after conviction;
  5. Holds that there has been a violation of the Convention as regards the other complaints raised under well-established case-law of the Court (see the appended table);
  6. Holds

(a) that the respondent State is to pay the applicants, within three months, the amounts indicated in the appended table, to be converted into the currency of the respondent State at the rate applicable at the date of settlement;

(b) that from the expiry of the above-mentioned three months until settlement simple interest shall be payable on the above amounts at a rate equal to the marginal lending rate of the European Central Bank during the default during the default period plus three percentage points.

Done in English, and notified in writing on 23 March 2023, pursuant to Rule 77 §§ 2 and 3 of the Rules of Court.

Viktoriya Maradudina Lətif Hüseynov
Acting Deputy Registrar President


APPENDIX

List of applications raising complaints under Article 3 of the Convention

(inadequate conditions of detention after conviction)

No.

Application no.

Date of introduction

Applicant’s name

Year of birth

Facility

Start and end date

Duration

Inmates per brigade

Sq. m per inmate

Number of toilets per brigade

Specific grievances

Other complaints under wellestablished case-law

Amount awarded for pecuniary and non-pecuniary damage and costs and expenses per applicant

(in euros)[1]

48041/16

01/08/2016

Ruslan Rafailovich BAGAUTDINOV

1986

IK-1 Komi Republic

09/01/2014

pending

More than 8 year(s) and 10 month(s) and 20 day(s)

200 inmate(s)

3.3 m²

4 toilet(s)

overcrowding, lack of fresh air, inadequate temperature, lack or inadequate furniture, lack of privacy for toilet, lack of or insufficient electric light, lack of or inadequate hygienic facilities, no or restricted access to shower, mouldy or dirty cell, poor quality of food

12,500

67362/17

08/08/2017

Maksim Stanislavovich SANDOMIROV

1983

IK-2 Zabaykalskiy Region

27/11/2013 to

22/09/2017

3 year(s) and 9 month(s) and 27 day(s)

IK-2 Zabaykalskiy Region

01/07/2018 to

23/11/2018

4 month(s) and

23 day(s)

2 m²

2.25 m²

overcrowding, lack of or inadequate hygienic facilities, no or restricted access to warm water, no or restricted access to running water, lack or inadequate furniture, infestation of cell with insects/rodents, no or restricted access to shower, unsanitary conditions, lack of or insufficient electric light, lack of or insufficient natural light, bad odour in cells

6,800

69436/17

16/08/2017

Khuler Eduardovich BOPUY-OOL

1993

IK-5 Krasnoyarsk Region

10/10/2016 to

01/03/2017

4 month(s) and 20 day(s)

IK-5 Krasnoyarsk Region

22/03/2017 to

03/08/2017

4 month(s) and 13 day(s)

IK-5 Krasnoyarsk Region

10/08/2017 to

22/12/2017

4 month(s) and 13 day(s)

2.6 m²

2.6 m²

2.9 m²

no or restricted access to toilet, no or restricted access to shower, poor quality of food

see above

see above

5,600

74195/17

12/06/2018

Aleksandr Sergeyevich ANISHCHENKO

1987

IK-43 Krasnoyarsk Region

27/10/2011 to

01/04/2019

7 year(s) and 5 month(s) and 6 day(s)

3 m²

no or restricted access to running water, no or restricted access to warm water, sharing cells with inmates infected with contagious disease, no sewage system in the detention facility

7,500

77574/17

19/10/2017

Aleksandr Vladimirovich PANKOV

1981

IK-11 Nizhniy Novgorod

30/06/2014

pending

More than 8 year(s) and 5 month(s) and 8 day(s)

145 inmate(s)

2 m²

5 toilet(s)

no or restricted access to shower, infestation of cell with insects/rodents, lack of fresh air, passive smoking, sharing cells with inmates infected with contagious disease

12,500

1989/18

07/12/2017

Maksim Vladimirovich KARTAVSHCHIKOV

1982

IK-29 Kirov Region

12/02/2014 to

15/04/2020

6 year(s) and 2 month(s) and 4 day(s)

2.7 m²

no ventilation, no or restricted access to warm water, lack of fresh air, lack of or insufficient natural light, lack of requisite medical assistance, centralized radio in brigade, poor quality of food, lack of privacy for toilet

12,300

7911/18

30/01/2018

Aleksey Sergeyevich BYANKIN

1985

IK-2 Zabaykalskiy Region

04/09/2016

pending

More than 6 year(s) and 2 month(s) and 25 day(s)

150 inmate(s)

2 m²

overcrowding, no or restricted access to warm water, no or restricted access to shower, lack of fresh air, lack of or restricted access to leisure or educational activities, lack of privacy for toilet

12,500

10839/18

12/02/2018

Aleksandr Vladimirovich USPENSKIY

1987

IK-5 Ivanovo Region

01/07/2013 to

27/02/2018

4 year(s) and 7 month(s) and 27 day(s)

105 inmate(s)

2.9 m²

5 toilet(s)

overcrowding, passive smoking, poor quality of food, no or restricted access to toilet, no or restricted access to shower, lack of privacy for toilet, inadequate temperature, lack of fresh air

5,300

11705/18

14/02/2018

Mikhail Valeryevich KUZNETSOV

1970

IK-5 Krasnoyarsk Region

01/12/2009 to

02/07/2021

11 year(s) and 7 month(s) and 2 day(s)

150 inmate(s)

3 m²

6 toilet(s)

overcrowding, lack of fresh air, lack of privacy for toilet, no or restricted access to warm water, no or restricted access to shower

12,500

13956/18

07/05/2018

Andrey Mikhaylovich KUZNETSOV

1971

IK-5 Krasnoyarsk Region

19/02/2014 to

01/10/2018

4 year(s) and 7 month(s) and 13 day(s)

100 inmate(s)

3.3 m²

4 toilet(s)

lack of or inadequate hygienic facilities, lack of privacy for toilet, lack of warm clothes

6,300

14026/18

12/02/2018

and

14051/18

01/03/2018

Maksim Viktorovich GRIGORYEV

1978

IK-5 Krasnoyarsk Region

01/07/2016 to

16/01/2018

1 year(s) and 6 month(s) and 16 day(s)

IK-5 Krasnoyarsk Region

17/11/2018 to

25/04/2019

5 month(s) and 9 day(s)

180 inmate(s)

4 m²

7 toilet(s)

140 inmate(s)

3 m²

8 toilet(s)

no or restricted access to toilet, lack of privacy for toilet, lack of or insufficient physical exercise in fresh air, inadequate clothing

lack of or inadequate hygienic facilities, lack of or insufficient electric light, no or restricted access to toilet, overcrowding

2,900

15724/18

14/03/2018

Nachyn Danilovich IRGIT-OOL

1981

IK-5 Krasnoyarsk Region

09/01/2018

pending

More than 4 year(s) and 10 month(s) and 22 day(s)

70 inmate(s)

3.35 m²

4 toilet(s)

no or restricted access to toilet, lack or inadequate furniture, lack of or restricted access to leisure or educational activities

Art. 8 (1) - permanent video surveillance of detainees in pre-trial or post-conviction detention facilities - 09/01/2018 - pending; in brigade no. 13 IK5 Krasnoyarsk Region;

opposite-sex operators; detention in different cells with video surveillance

12,500

17929/18

28/03/2018

Sergey Fedorovich BORONIN

1989

IK-5 Ivanovo Region

01/07/2015 to

07/06/2018

2 year(s) and 11 month(s) and 7 day(s)

108 inmate(s)

2.8 m²

4 toilet(s)

inadequate temperature, lack of fresh air, lack of or inadequate hygienic facilities, lack of or insufficient physical exercise in fresh air, lack of privacy for toilet, lack or inadequate furniture, no or restricted access to shower, no or restricted access to toilet, no or restricted access to warm water, passive smoking, overcrowding, sharing cells with inmates infected with contagious disease

5,800

27003/18

14/05/2018

Elmar Anerbekovich ISALIYEV

1995

IK-5 Kirov Region

18/09/2017 to

07/07/2018

9 month(s) and 20 day(s)

105 inmate(s)

2.4 m²

7 toilet(s)

overcrowding, leaking roof, no or restricted access to shower, lack of or inadequate hygienic facilities, poor quality of food, lack of fresh air, mouldy or dirty cell, insufficient number of toilets and wash basins, no or restricted access to warm water

4,400

27813/18

28/05/2018

Maksim Sergeyevich YERSHOV

1992

IK-11 Nizhniy Novgorod Region

31/07/2017 to

22/12/2021

4 year(s) and 4 month(s) and 23 day(s)

120 inmate(s)

2 m²

overcrowding, infestation of cell with insects/rodents, poor quality of food, lack of fresh air, mouldy or dirty cell

12,500

40660/18

06/08/2018

Andrey Vladimirovich PUGACHEV

1982

IK-8 Komi Republic

08/08/2014 to

11/09/2022

8 year(s) and 1 month(s) and 4 day(s)

140 inmate(s)

2–2.5 m²

5 toilet(s)

overcrowding, passive smoking, lack of fresh air, mouldy or dirty cell, no or restricted access to warm water, lack of or inadequate hygienic facilities, scarce surface of the walking ward, no or restricted access to toilet, no or restricted access to shower, no or restricted access to running water, lack of or insufficient electric light, lack of or restricted access to leisure or educational activities, inadequate temperature, lack of or no ventilation, lack of natural light, lack of or inadequate furniture

12,500

59425/18

04/03/2019

Denis Valeryevich IVANOV

1985

IK-2 Zabaykalskiy Region

27/04/2018

pending

More than 4 year(s) and 7 month(s) and 2 day(s)

100 inmate(s)

2.7 m²

6 toilet(s)

overcrowding, no or restricted access to warm water, lack of privacy for toilet, lack of or insufficient natural light, inadequate temperature, lack of or insufficient electric light, lack of fresh air, lack or inadequate furniture, no or restricted access to warm water.

12,500


[1] Plus any tax that may be chargeable to the applicants.