Communist who took on Putin says his family was used to ban him from election

Pavel Grudinin, a Russian entrepreneur and Communist Party candidate barred by electoral authorities from running in the upcoming parliamentary election, speaks during an interview at his office in the settlement of Sovkhoz imeni Lenina outside Moscow, Russia September 13, 2021. Picture taken September 13, 2021. REUTERS/Tatyana Makeyeva

LENIN FARM, Moscow Region (Reuters) - A wealthy Communist strawberry tycoon who came second to Vladimir Putin in the last presidential election has accused the authorities of using his family against him to stop him from running for parliament this week.

Pavel Grudinin, 60, a former Putin supporter, attracted over 8.5 million votes in 2018 when he ran against Putin and has long been touted as a possible leader of the Communists, the second biggest party in parliament.