TSARUKIAN WITHDRAWS LOCAL ELECTION APPEAL
By Astghik Bedevian
Radio Liberty, Czech Rep.
April 3 2007
A candidate of Gagik Tsarukian’s Prosperous Armenia Party (BHK) on
Tuesday unexpectedly withdrew his lawsuit against the pro-government
mayor of the southern town of Armavir who controversially defeated
him in a recent local election.
The candidate, Arayik Aghababian, asked a local court to annul the
official results of the March 25 vote, accusing the incumbent Mayor
Ruben Khlghatian of resorting to serious fraud. Aghababian asked the
presiding judge to call a halt to the two-day proceedings just as
appeared to be winning the case.
The judge, Manvel Simonian, was clearly sympathetic to the plaintiff
throughout the hearings, ordering a public recount of ballots in the
courtroom and accepting other petitions from Aghababian’s lawyers.
The court chairman, Hrach Sargsian, was also present in the court,
openly issuing instructions to Simonian that favored the defeated
candidate.
The latter alleged that the mayor won mainly as a result of illegally
including scores of people, who do not live in Armavir and therefore
can not elect its mayor, to the local vote registers.
Khlghatian, who is affiliated with the governing Republican Party
(BHK), and his representatives denied any wrongdoing. "We won fair
and square," the mayor told RFE/RL.
Aghababian gave no reason for his surprise decision to withdraw the
lawsuit. But local BHK activists said he acted in accordance with
a last-minute order from the party’s leadership in Yerevan. Neither
Tsarukian, nor his aides have commented on the election controversy
so far.
The HHK and the BHK are seen as the top contenders of Armenia’s
parliamentary elections scheduled for May 12. The Armavir vote
highlighted their uneasy relationship which some observers say could
develop into a serious confrontation in the coming weeks.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
