Home of opposition Armenia Alliance MP searched amidst post-election recrimina

The home of opposition MP Ishkhan Saghatelyan, from former President Robert Kocharyan’s Armenia Alliance party, has been searched as part of what the country’s Investigative Committee said is a criminal case. The Tuesday morning raid was the latest in a string of ongoing investigations into suspected wrongdoing by Armenia’s opposition following the victory of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s Civil Contract party in the parliamentary elections earlier in June.

The Investigative Committee did not specify on what grounds the search was being conducted, simply telling the state-run media outlet Armenpress that, ‘investigative and procedural actions are being carried out within the framework of a criminal proceeding’.

Shortly after the election, Saghatelyan had criticised Pashinyan for declaring victory before the official results were announced, claiming it amounted to ‘nothing more than attempts to pressure the Central Electoral Commission [CEC] and seize power’.

A number of other opposition figures have faced various forms of pressure since the election, including travel bans and the opening of investigations.

On 17 June, the CEC approved a request by the Prosecutor General’s Office to revoke Kocharyan’s parliamentary immunity, paving the way for expected criminal charges to be filed over abuse of official authority and money laundering over a 2004 transaction.

Two days later, Kocharyan filed a lawsuit to dispute the lifting of his immunity.

Separately, fellow opposition figure Narek Karapetyan filed his own lawsuit against the Investigative Committee, demanding the body retract its allegations that he ‘concealed’ his foreign citizenship while registering as a parliamentary candidate, which constitutes an obstacle to acquiring the status of a public official.

The two legal disputes come as the Constitutional Court prepares to hear challenges to the results of the parliamentary elections.

According to the final results, the ruling Civil Contract party will hold 64 seats in parliament, while Strong Armenia secured 29 seats and the Armenia Alliance won 12. The opposition Prosperous Armenia party led by tycoon Gagik Tsarukyan failed to pass the 4% threshold required to enter parliament, receiving only 3.9893% of the vote after a controversial decision by the CEC.