[2] As he finished this, Udaltsov was immediately rearrested and given a 15-day sentence for allegedly earlier leaving hospital without permission when he was being treated there during a previous, different period of detention in October.

[3] One of Udaltsov's lawyers, Violetta Volkova, applied to the European Court of Human Rights for his release, claiming a list of procedural violations.

[2] According to Nikolai Polozov, one of his lawyers, "These cases are fabricated as a deliberate obstacle to prevent Sergei from exercising his constitutional right to free political expression".

Adoption of a more militant posture was a change of tactics for the protest movement, which heretofore had dutifully sought permits and maintained a peaceful atmosphere.

[4][5] On 8 May, the day after Putin was inaugurated, Udaltsov and fellow opposition leader Alexei Navalny were arrested after an anti-Putin rally at Clean Ponds, and were each given 15-day jail sentences.

[7] On 24 July 2014 a court in Moscow sentenced Udaltsov and his co-defendant Leonid Razvozzhayev to 4+1⁄2 years in a penal camp for organizing the May 2012 protest which ended in violence between the police and demonstrators.

[10][11] The documentary purported to show a low-quality secret recording of a meeting between Targamadze and Russian activists, which NTV stated had been given to its staff "on the street by a stranger of Georgian nationality".

[12] Razvozzhayev fled to Kyiv, Ukraine, to apply for asylum, but was allegedly kidnapped by security forces, returned to Moscow, tortured, and made to sign a confession implicating himself, Udaltsov, and anti-corruption activist Alexei Navalny.

Russian lawmaker Dmitry Gudkov was quoted as saying, "There is still protest and we want change, and they can't frighten us with detention or pressure or searches or arrests or anything else.

[20][21][22] Udaltsov served as a campaign manager for Communist Party of the Russian Federation (KPRF) candidate Gennady Zyuganov during the 2012 presidential election.

[23] In a January 2012 interview, Udaltsov called for "a direct democracy, where the people would have their say through fair and transparent referendums, where they could interact with authorities using the Internet, where they could have a say in social reforms."