A university teacher has been fired under Vladimir Putin ’s draconian laws after telling her students that prison is better than being his "cannon fodder."
Olga Lizunkova, 25, was reported to police by one or more of her students at the University of Engineering and Economics, in Nizhny Novgorod.
The English teacher is waiting to see if she will be jailed for up to five years or fined for “discrediting the Russian army”.
She is accused of telling her students - who were at risk of being called up under Putin’s mobilisation drive - that Ukraine "is stronger and will win anyway".
It was better to go to prison than become "cannon fodder" in Ukraine, she allegedly advised them.
Olga is now in trouble with the authorities over her “monologue” to students which was delivered two days after Putin announced the partial mobilisation of 300,000 civilian reservists, reported BAZA media.
She has since said: "I didn’t advise them to go to jail. They misrepresented me. I said prison is better than war."
The university’s administration said today that Lizunkova "no longer seems to work" in her job.
This was seen as an indication she had been fired.
The married teacher can be fined up to £740 or face jail of up to five years if her words are found to discredit the Russian army.
The law has been introduced to stifle criticism of Putin's attempt to invade Ukraine.
Olga's previous employer at an English language school in the city praised her as an excellent teacher.
A spokesperson said: "The teacher is good and knowledgeable. Information was always presented very appropriately. Parents praised, children were happy."
The Kremlin leader's latest ploy to appease the families of those needed for his war is to offer them sheep, vegetables and firewood.
Unhappy mothers and wives of men sent to fight for their country have so far received 91 live rams in the Tuva republic, the home of Russian defence minister Sergei Shoigu.
Last month, Putin called on 300,000 men to fight and save his failing war in Ukraine.
Russia showcased its military scaling up with footage of a low-altitude assault on its neighbour by Su-25 attack aircraft.
But Russian women have expressed concern for the hundreds of thousands of men ordered to take up arms.
This week, Putin formally annexed four regions of Ukraine, in defiance of international condemnation.
Meanwhile Ukraine's counter-offensives in the east and south of the country are making significant gains despite mass mobilisation across Russia to bring more troops into the fight.
