Moscow - Saturday marks the 63rd anniversary of Joseph Stalin's death, but while the infamous dictator is dead and gone, communism in Russia is not.

A worsening economy has many Russians feeling nostalgic for the Soviet days of old. Recent polls suggest half of all Russians still think they were actually better off under the Soviet system.

Maria Krechatova, a curator at a Moscow exhibition of Stalin-era art, said: "Interest in Joseph Stalin is increasing. It is understandable. We celebrated the 70th anniversary of the World War II and we should not forget who was at the helm of the country and under whose leadership the victory was achieved."

With parliamentary elections looming, a possible Communist party resurgence is starting to worry the Kremlin.

Dmitri Medvedev, Russia's prime minister, singled out the party recently, saying it is the main electoral threat to the ruling United Russia party.

For his part, President Vladimir Putin surprised many recently with a rare attack on Lenin, saying he planted "an atomic bomb under Russia" with the way he had stitched the Soviet Union together.