The head of Russia's parliament said he plans to submit legislation next week that would allow the state to seize the property of "scoundrels" who criticize the war in Ukraine.
Vyacheslav Volodin, speaker of the Duma, an institution controlled by the Kremlin, said he planned to submit the bill on January 22.
"Anyone who tries to destroy Russia, betray it, must be accordingly punished and compensate the state with their property for the damage caused," he said in a Telegram post on January 20.
The bill, if passed, would be the latest in a series of harsh measures aimed at stifling any dissent inside Russia as it struggles on the battlefield in Ukraine.
The bill comes less than two months before Russia holds presidential elections that incumbent Vladimir Putin is expected to easily win.
Public frustration with the war, which has killed at least 42,000 Russian soldiers and seriously injured tens of thousands of more, has been growing as Russia makes little progress.
SEE ALSO: The Week In Russia: Carnage And ClampdownWives and mothers of Russian soldiers fighting in Ukraine have staged small-scale protests in recent months demanding their loved ones be demobilized.
In the weeks following the February 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Putin signed into law bills criminalizing any criticism of the Russian armed forces and the war in Ukraine.
Those convicted of such "crimes," which can be anything that does not adhere to the official state narrative about the war, face up to 15 years in prison.
Russia has opened more than 350 cases into alleged "discreditation" of the army or spreading "false" information.
Putin last year increased the maximum punishment for "treason" to life in prison. Russia last year opened a record number of treason cases since the fall of the Soviet Union, including one against a high-school student.
In his Telegram statement denouncing "scoundrels," Volodin singled out Russian cultural figures in particular. The law also includes a provision to strip Russian citizens of any state awards, a likely direct attack on prominent cultural figures.
Some of Russia's leading musicians and artists, including Soviet-era pop star Alla Pugacheva, have publicly come out against the invasion of Ukraine. Such cultural critics have largely relocated abroad amid fear of prosecution.
Russia will hold presidential elections on March 15-17. The vote is largely for show as the result is predetermined, experts say.
The Kremlin has jailed the most prominent opposition figures and banned others from running against Putin, who is seeking his fifth term as president.