Tens of thousands of protesters took to the streets of Moscow on Saturday, condemning election fraud and demanding a repeat election.
Wearing white ribbons and chanting slogans such as "We are the Power!" and "Russia without Putin", protesters called for an end to Putin's 12-year rule.
The protest, with no central leader, is considered to be the most largest show of public condemnation since those against the Soviet Union over 20 years ago. Saturday's protest was larger than the previous protest on 10th December, against vote rigging in the recent elections.
Mikhail Gorbachev, the leader who oversaw the end of the Soviet Union on 25th December 1991, said,
“I’m happy that I have lived to see the people waking up. This raises big hopes."
Speaking to Ekho Moskvy radio, Gorbachev urged Putin to relinquish power peacefully, as he had done.