Armenia's election commission rejects bid to detain opposition MP-elect Narek Karapetyan

By Lia Avagyan

Armenia's Central Election Commission (CEC) rejected prosecutors' request to detain opposition MP-elect Narek Karapetyan on Wednesday, although it authorized criminal charges against him, setting up a legal dispute over parliamentary immunity ahead of the new legislature's first sitting.

The Prosecutor General's Office had asked the CEC for permission both to bring charges against Karapetyan and to place him in pretrial detention. After two days of deliberations, the commission approved the request to initiate criminal proceedings but returned the request seeking detention, according to Karapetyan's lawyer, Aram Vardevanyan.

Hours later, prosecutors formally charged Karapetyan with coercing people to participate in a public gathering through violence or threats and with laundering money on an especially large scale. The latter charge carries a prison sentence of up to 12 years under Armenia's Criminal Code. Prosecutors did not disclose details of the allegations.

"The issue of a preventive measure - detention or house arrest - will not take place," Vardevanyan told reporters after the CEC session. He argued that the commission had correctly concluded, based on a Constitutional Court ruling, that it lacked the authority to decide whether an elected lawmaker could be deprived of liberty.

CEC Chairman Vahagn Hovakimyan later acknowledged that the question of depriving an elected member of parliament of liberty falls within parliament's powers once an individual has acquired MP status.

Karapetyan heads the electoral list of the opposition Strong Armenia alliance and officially received his parliamentary mandate after the final election results were certified on July 21. Under Armenian law, until the newly elected National Assembly convenes its first session on Aug. 2, the CEC is responsible for authorizing criminal proceedings against elected lawmakers. After parliament begins its work, prosecutors must seek parliament's consent to lift an MP's immunity.

Vardevanyan described the criminal case as politically motivated, saying prosecutors had failed to substantiate their request during the closed-door CEC hearing. He also claimed that the thousands of pages submitted with the prosecution's motion contained virtually no references to his client.

The case comes amid a broader crackdown on opposition figures following Armenia's parliamentary election. Two other Strong Armenia lawmakers-elect, Davit Ghazinyan and Hayk Sukiassyan, remain in custody. Their lawyers argue they should be released in light of Constitutional Court rulings on parliamentary immunity and have filed motions seeking their immediate release.