Kremlin denies it has been pushing for Navalny to be buried in secret

The Russian government has rejected accusations that it has been trying to pressure relatives of the late opposition figure Alexei Navalny into burying him in private, after his body was finally released on Saturday.

"Of course the Kremlin cannot exert any pressure. These are further absurd statements by (Navalny's) supporters," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told the Interfax news agency on Monday.

The body of Navalny, who died in a Siberian prison aged 47 on February 16, was only handed over to his mother on Saturday after days of waiting and pleading with the authorities, including a direct appeal to Russian President Vladimir Putin to release the body.

Lyudmila Navalnaya also accused the authorities of having tried to pressure her to bury her son in secret.

Navalny died on February 16 in the prison camp with the unofficial name "Polar Wolf" in the Siberian Arctic region of Yamal, Russian authorities said.

The circumstances of his death remain unclear.

Russia's leading dissident, weakened by a poison attack and repeated solitary confinement in the camp, is said to have collapsed while exercising at the icy prison yard and died despite attempts to resuscitate him.

According to Navalny's team, the death certificate mentions "natural" causes.

It is still unclear where and how Navalny will be buried. His mother has denied the request for a secret funeral calling for a public ceremony instead to allow his supporters to pay their respects as well.