Maria Alekhina, one of the three members of the band Pussy Riot who were convicted for their punk prayer in Christ the Savior Cathedral, has been released.

      She was serving her two-year sentence in a prison in the Perm Region when the State Duma passed a law on amnesty to mark the 20th anniversary of the Russian Constitution.

      Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, the other remaining member of Pussy Riot, is expected to go home any time.

      Passed with only minor amendments, the law on amnesty is expected to give a chance for release for more than 25,000 people.

      According to the document, the list of prisoners to be freed includes, inter alia:

      • mothers of underage children

      • those who committed a crime before they came of age

      • disabled

      • those who have been rewarded for their services to Russia.

      There’ve been concerns in the media over the possible release of ex-defence minister Anatoly Serdyukov because his case meets the requirements set forth by the amnesty law.