Today in court, the Rotenbergs/Rosavtodor jointly declared that they really do not want to provide the judge with the concession agreement for the Platon toll system.
This remarkable exchange followed:
*- Are you opposed to submitting the concession agreement? Is it classified? No, it is not classified, but we believe the case can be heard without it. - Then what exactly are we supposed to examine? We believe the plaintiffs' claims. - But the plaintiffs are asking the court to declare the concession agreement void. Yes. - You want me to consider that without the text of the agreement? Yes.*
The judge did not agree with that turn of events and ordered them to finally produce the text of that very concession agreement, which no one has seen so far. There is a text that was sent to us through the Black Box, but no one has confirmed or denied its authenticity.
As for the substance of Rosavtodor's/the Rotenbergs' defense, the filings submitted to the court are strikingly similar - it is hard to tell who copied from whom. They barely argue with us on the merits of the deal, instead insisting that the plaintiffs, Navalny and Zhdanov, are acting in bad faith.
As if no one in Russia has the right to sue dear little Rotenberg, our bright falcon.
This is one of those cases where the whole country sees the Platon system as an evil, yet you are the one accused of abusing your rights, even though ACF (the Anti-Corruption Foundation) is the only organization actually fighting this evil. In its response, Rosavtodor essentially admits that the law was broken and the deal is tainted - how else are we supposed to understand this phrase:
That is precisely what our lawsuit is aimed at: protecting rights. Protecting the rights of entrepreneurs, each of whom could have taken part in a tender on such tempting terms. And, more importantly, protecting the rights of truck drivers and end consumers.
By the way, representatives of the truck drivers also came to the hearing:
The next hearing is on March 2. Yes, yes, the speed of justice is truly impressive. And that is after we asked for it to be handled "faster."