A large family from Tuapse considered the investigation into their complaint to the prosecutor's office to be a formality.

A Tuapse couple with many children received a response from the prosecutor's office to their complaint regarding the refusal to provide their daughter with the baby food she was entitled to. The investigation was conducted pro forma, and the issue of state assistance has not been resolved, they stated.

As reported by "Caucasian Knot," instead of the 78 cans of free baby food she was entitled to, the daughter of Sergei Kartashov and Tatyana Pimenova received only 39. The prosecutor's office, which the parents appealed to, found no violations in the situation. "You did not submit a request to extend the provision of specialized baby food products," I. Kliminchenko, head of the Kuban prosecutor's office for supervision of the implementation of laws on minors and youth, explained to the couple on January 12. At the same time, the Social Welfare Department assured the couple that "the period for providing specialized food products will be extended without requiring an application."

On February 13, the family of Sergey Kartashov and Tatyana Pimenova received a response to their complaint about Klimchenko's formal reply. They expected the complaint to be reviewed by a higher-ranking prosecutor, but the new response was signed by the same Irina Kliminchenko.

"The social welfare agency did not receive timely information regarding the extension of [...] the unified benefit payment through interdepartmental electronic communication, and therefore there were no grounds for providing your child with specialized baby food for May 2025. [...] The facts of your child's failure to fully provide specialized baby food for the first six months of life will be included by the regional prosecutor's office in a summary submission to the Ministry of Labor and Social Development of the Krasnodar Territory," states the document, a copy of which is in the possession of the "Caucasian Knot."

The complaint is formally being considered, but there is no independent verification.

The officials' position has outraged the parents. "We received a response to our complaint from the same person. Formally, the complaint is being considered, but there is no independent review. How can one person judge themselves? The child is deprived of the assistance he is entitled to," Sergey Kartashov told a "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

"In the second response, Irina Kliminchenko states: 'The unified benefit was assigned from May 1, 2025.' Does that mean we were entitled to assistance? But we weren't given the formula for May because 'the information wasn't received.' Why should a child depend on how agencies communicate?" Tatyana Pimenova told a "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

The formula is needed on time, not three months later. During this time, the child had grown.

She noted that by August 2025, when they were given "additional nutrition" following the intervention of the interdistrict prosecutor's office, a significant portion of the six-month period had already passed. "Formula is needed on time, not three months later. During this time, the child has grown without the required cans," the woman lamented.

The girl's parents "have been corresponding for six months about cans of infant formula," Pimenova stated. "The state system for protecting children's rights must work faster than the baby grows," she said.

"The story of 39 missed cans has turned into a debate about principles: should interdepartmental formalities and bureaucratic red tape outweigh the guarantees of social support for newborns, and who is responsible for ensuring that assistance arrives on time?" - added Sergey Kartashov.

Lawyer points out violations committed by officials

When an official reviews a complaint about their own response, the principle of independent review and citizens' right to an effective appeal are violated, commented independent lawyer Elena Pavlova.

"This is a serious procedural violation. That is, prosecutors, who are supposed to monitor compliance with the law, are themselves [committing violations]," she told a "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

Technical failures between agencies cannot deprive a child of guaranteed assistance.

She noted that a communication breakdown between agencies should not affect the provision of support to the family. "If the benefit is assigned retroactively, the right to it existed from the date of assignment. Accordingly, social support measures dependent on the receipt of benefits must be provided for the same period. Technical failures between agencies cannot deprive a child of guaranteed assistance. Compensation "later" does not make up for lost time – support measures for a newborn must be timely and targeted," said Elena Pavlova.

As a reminder, the couple's youngest daughter was born in 2025. In the Krasnodar Territory, children with low family incomes are guaranteed free specialized nutrition for the first six months of life. They are entitled to 78 cans of baby food, each costing approximately 500 rubles. However, according to Kartashov and Pimenova, their newborn daughter was short 39 cans of baby food. They had to go into debt totaling 20,000 rubles to feed their child for three months while they sought the right to receive nutrition, which was assigned by the Tuapse District Social Welfare Department in February 2025.