YEREVAN. – Armenian National Assembly (NA) Speaker Hovik Abrahamyan on Friday signed a protocol on early termination of ruling Republican Party (RPA) MP Ruben Hayrapetyan’s MP mandate and forwarded it to the Central Electoral Commission, Armenian News-NEWS.am sources close to NA have informed.  

As Armenian News-NEWS.am informed earlier, during NA special session on September 5, NA Deputy Speaker Eduard Sharmazanov had announced Hayrapetyan’s formal petition to give up his parliamentary mandate. And, in line with NA procedures, if Hayrapetyan did not withdraw his petition within fifteen days after its publicizing in the NA session, his parliamentary mandate was to be taken away.

And those fifteen days have expired on Friday at 1pm. 

To note, an incident had occurred at capital city Yerevan’s Harsnaqar Restaurant Complex on June 17, where several military doctors including Edgar Mikoyan, Arkadi Aghajanyan, Garik Soghomonyan, Artak Bayadyan and Vahe Avetyan were brutally beaten by security personnel. And Vahe Avetyan died in hospital on June 29.

Subsequently, a criminal lawsuit was filed and, now, six people are standing trial.

The Restaurant’s owner is RPA MP, Football Federation of Armenia President, and businessman Ruben Hayrapetyan, who on July 4 had formally submitted his resignation from his parliamentary seat in connection with this incident.   

Photo by Sona Barseghyan