By YEREVAN. Jan 11 (Interfax) – A civil law court in Yerevan has dismissed a lawsuit vs. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan filed by former Armenian President Robert Kocharyan, who demanded that "slander be publicly" refuted.
Pashinyan said at a rally on March 1, 2021, that defendants in a criminal case, opened on counts of "toppling the constitutional system," among them Kocharyan, were trying to stall the proceeding "in the hope of usurping power once again."
"In 2008, these people who were in power led the army out against the people to keep people from exercising their right to express their will. I think the March 1 case has been solved. But the killers have not been found as the investigative bodies have falsified the evidence. And now these same people are trying to lead the army out against the people," Pashinyan said.
Later, Aik Alumyan, a lawyer for Robert Kocharyan, filed a lawsuit against Pashinyan, demanding to recognize the presumption of innocence and refute slander against his client, as well as seeking compensation of four million dram (some $7,500).
The court studied Pashinyan’s speech and concluded that it was more of a "political remark" and did not contain specific facts degrading the honor and dignity of the plaintiff, according to information available on the Datalex judicial data portal.
As the term of office of Kocharyan was expiring in March 2008 and he was preparing for power transition Serzh Sargsyan, who won the election, supporters of presidential candidate Levon Ter-Petrosyan, including Pashinyan, disagreed with the voting results and staged protests in Yerevan. The demonstrations were dispersed, and ten people were killed and over 250 injured during the unrest.
