MOSCOW, March 17 (UPI) -- Several hundred people attended an unsanctioned rally Saturday in a busy Moscow square organized by opponents of Vladimir Putin.
Police allowed the demonstration in Pushkin Square to proceed without interference despite its lack of a permit, ITAR-Tass reported.
Putin, who became prime minister in 2008 after his second term as president, was recently elected to a third presidential term. He takes office in May.
Sergei Udaltsov of the Left Front coalition announced at Saturday's rally that a "March of Millions" is planned for May 6, the day before Putin's inauguration.
Much of the protest Saturday was aimed at the state television broadcaster, NTV.
Gennady Gudkov, a member of the State Duma, the lower house of Parliament, said Russia must "depoliticize" its legal system, allegedly used by Putin to imprison opponents he considers dangerous. Olga Romanova, one of the other speakers, is married to Andrei Kozlov, a businessman recently sentenced to five years in prison.
