Putin feeling the heat amid protest over two arrests

Thousands of people are protesting in Russia calling for Vladimir Putin's resignation following the arrest of a regional governor since last week.

Demonstrations have been taking place in towns across the Khabarovsk Krai, a region that stretches from the frontier with China to the artic along the pacific ocean.

The outburst against Putin is coming from a region that's 4,000 miles away from the capital Moscow.

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Khabarovsk Krai's Governor Sergei Furgal was detained and taken to Moscow. He is accused of killing several businessmen nearly 15 years ago. The governor denies all charges. If found guilty, he might spend the rest of his life in prison.

Sergei Furgal is a popular regional leader. He is one of Russia's few provincial leaders, who is not associated with the political forces in kremlin. In 2018, Furgal defeated Putin's United Russia Party candidate to become the governor. This was seen as Putin losing his hold in the far-reaching areas of Russia. The protesters say t is a political witch-hunt and that Furgal's popularity in the region has made Putin nervous. Close to 40,000 people spilt out on to the streets ofKhabarovsk Krai.

One protester fears Putin will now imprison anybody who could be a threat. Interestingly, the protests aren't just taking place in some remote corner of Russia. There are protests erupting in Moscow too. The capital's streets rocked under the march of protesters.

Former journalist Ivan Safronov has been arrested and charged with treason. In May, he quit his job as a journalist and joined as an adviser at Russia's space agency. He has been accused of passing on secrets to the Czech Republic. If found guilty,he faces 20 years in jail. The former scribe has denied the allegation.

He shared an abrasive relationship with the authorities as a journalist. In 2019,court proceedings were held over one of his articles. Safronov had written about Russia's deliveries of Sukhoi-35 fighter aircraft to Egypt. The articles were ordered to be taken down. The arrest of a former journalist for treason sent shock waves in the media circles of Moscow. More than a dozen journalists protested against Safronov's arrest. They were quickly detained. The journalists say the case is shrouded in secrecy.

The protesters are demanding the officials to declassify the case andspell out the allegations against Safronov. A petition has been signed by 55,000 people so far. Safronov's lawyer says the secrecy violates a basic right...

Political persecution in a remote province and silencing of a journalist who may know too much. Now, Putin is facing the heat even before he could get comfortable in the throne he has made his for life.