Russian minister resigns over gay scandal

The Minister of Youth Policy of the Samara Region of Russia, Sergei Burtsev, announced his resignation. State Duma deputy Alexander Khinshtein linked his decision this with the "gay scandal" that sparked in the region.

On April 11, Khinshtein said that he was "sending inquiries to all instances, as well as to Governor [of the Samara region] Dmitry Azarov” regarding the fact that Burtsev was on vacation with his subordinate Andrei Zolotukhin and lived with him in the same hotel room in Kislovodsk.

"It is no coincidence that Burtsev and Zolotukhin are directly referred to as a "couple” on local social media, and there are many "tender” photos of them on the net. <…> If we were talking about any other official, I would not report that, but it goes about the minister who is directly responsible for the implementation of youth policy in a multimillion-strong region.”

Announcing his resignation, Sergei Burtsev said that he "absolutely disagrees with the assumptions voiced” and "refutes them,” but "considers it wrong to cast a shadow on the region's youth policy.”