Ramzan Kadyrov’s 15-year-old son, Adam Kadyrov, has received distinctions from the Russian republics of Tatarstan and Karachay-Cherkessia for promoting ‘interfaith harmony’ and strengthening ‘Islamic values’. 

The awards come less than a month after Adam Kadyrov was filmed beating a man accused of burning a Qur’an, leading to a spat with a Tartar official. 

On Wednesday, the head of Karachay-Cherkessia, Rashid Termezov, awarded Kadyrov with the republican order for his ‘services to the Karachay-Cherkess Republic […] and contributions to the development of interethnic and interregional unity and strengthening Islamic values’.

‘Congratulations to Adam Ramzanovich on this high award — I believe that the grandson of the first President of the Chechen Republic, Akhmat-Khadzhi Kadyrov, bless his memory, and the son of my brother and colleague, the Head of the Chechen Republic Ramzan Kadyrov, is a true patriot of his small motherland of Chechnya and his fatherland’, Termezov wrote on Telegram.

A day prior, Tatarstan Head Rustan Minnikhanov had visited Chechnya to present Adam Kadyrov with the Order of Duslyk for his ‘significant contributions to strengthening interethnic and interfaith peace and harmony’.

Ramzan Kadyrov received Minnikhanov upon his arrival in Grozny, and thanked him on Telegram for awarding his son with the order.

‘​​I am grateful to Rustam Nurgalievich for presenting the Order of Duslyk to a representative of the Kadyrov family. It is a great honour for all of us to serve for the benefit of our common motherland and its multinational society’, he wrote.

RFE/RL reported that Tatarstan’s Order of Duslyk is awarded to those who have significantly contributed to the ‘development of economic, trade, scientific, technical, social, cultural relations and industrial potential, effective investment, charitable and public activities that contribute to the prosperity of the Republic of Tatarstan’.

Earlier this month, Adam Kadyrov was awarded with the Hero of Chechnya distinction, shortly after his father, Ramzan Kadyrov, published a video of him beating Nikita Zhuravel, a man accused of burning a Qur’an.

Zhuravel was charged in Volgograd, but had his case transferred to Chechnya in May.

[Read more on OC Media: Kadyrov posts video of son beating man accused of burning Quran]

On 19 October, a Tatarstan regional MP, Azat Khamayev, publicly criticised Chechnya for awarding Adam Kadyrov with the order after beating Zhuravel.

‘The first question I asked myself: what legal field do we live in today? Here is an example from life: the head of a constituent entity of the Russian Federation assigned the title of hero to his son for beating a person. Further developing his idea, [Ramzan Kadyrov] says that he [Adam] is the hero of all Muslims. Who can answer?’ wrote Khamayev on Telegram.