Letter to Grigori Zinoviev, April 26, 1919

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Lenin’s instruction to Zinoviev was written on a letter from V. N. Yakovleva, a member of the Board of the People’s Commissariat for Food, replying to an inquiry of Lenin’s concerning a request by the Petrograd Co-operative of Ukrainian Citizens for their rationed food products to be turned over to them. The letter stated that, at the request of the Ukrainian Soviet Government, the People’s Commissariat for Food, byway of exception, had permitted this co-operative to import from the Ukraine a small amount of rationed food products, but that A. Y. Badayev, Food Commissar of the Petrograd Labour Commune, had prevented it. Yakovleva wrote that this was not the first case of failure on the part of Badayev to comply with the instructions of the People’s Commissariat for Food.

On this subject see also this volume, Document 318.

Comrade Zinoviev,

Read this yourself and show it to Comrade Badayev. He must be strictly reproved: one more instance of non-fulfilment of directives from the centre—and we shall prosecute him. This is no joke.

Get him to sign that he has read this.

Lenin

26/IV.

P.S. Return the enclosed material and this letter.