The Novo-Savinovsky District Court in Kazan has ruled that a local man who officially changed his name to “Jesus Christ” must revert to his original identity.
The court has ruled that the civil status authorities are obliged to restore the man’s real name – Evgheni Cekulaev – who changed his identity to “Jesus Petrovich Christ”, reports the publication business-gazeta.ru.
The decision was pronounced at the request of the prosecutor’s office. Prosecutor Ildar Ismaghilov invoked an opinion of the Ministry of Justice, which specifies that changing the name for religious reasons is not allowed and does not constitute an absolute right of citizens.
According to the prosecutor’s office, adopting a name associated with the central figure of Christianity can mislead the public and offend the feelings of believers.
Following the decision, the man will have to redo his documents with his original identity, Evgheni Petrovich Cekulaev.
His case has attracted the attention of the authorities for other reasons as well.
In 2025, he was fined twice for the fictitious registration of dozens of migrants in his apartment, and was subsequently forcibly brought before the court, being sanctioned for obstructing the activity of a public official.
In December, another court in Kazan sentenced him to two years of suspended imprisonment in a case related to the same facts, the source cited reports.