The arbitration court of St.-Petersburg and Leningrad region did not reveal violations of the Antimonopoly legislation in the actions of the municipal Committee of property relations (KIO) in the transmission of St. Sampson Cathedral of Russian Orthodox Church, reports patriarhiei with reference to information Agency “Interfax — Severo-the West”.
The court also ruled that the Office of the Federal Antimonopoly service in St. Petersburg when considering the case went beyond the powers granted authority of the Federal law “On protection of competition”.
In Committee remind that the complex of buildings at St. Sampson’s Cathedral — the Cathedral itself, the bell tower, the chapel and the jubilee house was transferred to the diocese of St. Petersburg in 2016 in accordance with the law “On transfer to religious organizations property of religious significance owned by the state or municipal property”.
Between the city and the diocese was awarded the contract for gratuitous use. In November 2017, the IOC gave the diocese permission to share the object for free use to the actual user — the parish of St. Sampson Cathedral. Also the parish was transferred in the Cathedral Museum objects.
Sampsonievsky Cathedral, which was part of the State Museum-monument “St. Isaac’s Cathedral”, was transferred to the Church in February 2017. UFAS across St.-Petersburg insisted that the KIO had violated the “Law on competition” at the conclusion of the contract of uncompensated use of object of uninhabited Fund.
In March of this year, KIO said that they changed the text of the order on the transfer of the Cathedral to avoid sanctions from the Federal Antimonopoly service.
“KIO issued an order (on the transfer of the Cathedral — approx. ed.) but a little bit wrong. During the consideration of the antitrust Committee has made the order changes and eliminated violations in connection disappears, the subject of the claim,” — said the Agency interlocutor following the meeting of the Commission of management FAS.
The FAS emphasized that the parish is solely responsible for its obligations, however, not liable for the obligations of the diocese, and the diocese is not liable for the obligations of the parish.