THE SNP landslide at the General Election is evidence that the 2014 independence referendum was rigged, according to Russia's top elections official.

Vladimir Churov, who heads the Central Electoral Commission, told the official Tass news agency that last September's poll - at which there were Russian monitors - should now be investigated.

Commenting on the Nationalists' emphatic victory in Scotland, the official said: "It confirms our position; that the outcome of the independence referendum in Scotland was a total falsification."

Mr Churov noted how the election results showed "the SNP, which fought for a Yes in the referendum, won far more votes now than it did then".

He went on: "We doubted that the referendum had been organised cleanly and we had observers there".

He added that he felt the scale of the SNP's success in Scotland last week "gives further cause to examine the referendum".

Mr Churov said there had been no major changes or upheavals in the time between last September and last week's election, saying: "I see no reason for such a shift in opinion".

He added: "In the election the voters were the people who actually live in Scotland and are British citizens. But in the referendum all the EU citizens were able to vote, including several dozen thousand Poles working in Scotland."