The hunt for enemies in Russia sank to a new level when a woman was interrogated by police for wearing her yellow down jacket against a vaguely blue sky.

Antonida Smolina, 38, was reported by an anonymous accuser of promoting the colours of Ukraine. In doing so, she was “discrediting” Putin’s army, it was alleged. After posting the picture she found she was the subject of a police probe by dictator Vladimir Putin ’s law enforcement. "A district police officer came to me,” said the journalist from Veliky Ustyug.

He said that a certain Valery P wrote a statement against me to the police.” By wearing yellow against a blue sky she was "causing associations with enemy symbols, discrediting our government and army”. She told the police that "my down jacket is three years old, and my salary does not allow me to buy new clothes every time the public assessment of a particular colour changes.

She says she's already stopped wearing the jacket as the season's changed, but not because she was ordered to (
Image:
Antonida Smolina/east2west)

“And the colour of my down jacket, to be very strict, is not yellow, but Crayola.” She is forced to write a formal response to the accusation and the police will decide what action to take. Social media users mocked draconian new laws in Russia which have led to people seeing enemies everywhere linked to the war against Ukraine.

"Yellow is banned? The rainbow is banned? The triumph of greyness,” said one. “The next step is to ban the yellow sun against the blue sky. This is enemy symbolism”, posted another. A further comment read: "Soon a criminal case will be opened against the sky and the sun if someone doesn’t like it."
The allegations are being widely mocked by social media users in Russia (
Image:
Antonida Smolina/east2west)

One more mocking post read: "The sky is recognised as extremist and is banned in the Russian Federation. However, it is still present, like the Taliban." Antonio - from Vologda region - wrote: “The post that so offended Valery P has nothing to do with politics, but politics is killing it in the souls of my fellow countrymen. And it's scary.”

She admitted she has stopped wearing the yellow jacket. “I have already changed my jacket due to the season,” she said. “But I definitely wouldn't change it because of [the complaint].”