YEREVAN. – A criminal case is instigated based on wiretapping conversation between former Armenian FM and incumbent Prosperous Armenia Party (PAP) MP Vartan Oskanian and parliamentary opposition Armenian National Congress (ANC) coordinator, MP Levon Zurabyan, based on the Article 144: Illegal collecting, keeping, use and dissemination of information pertaining to personal or family life.

Information which is considered to be a personal or family secret used without one’s consent or dissemination on public or through mass media, or collecting or keeping, unless this is envisaged by law, is punished with a fine in the amount of 200 to 500 minimal salaries, or correctional labor for up to 1 year, or with arrest for the term of 1 to 2 months, Oskanian’s lawyer Tigran Atanesyan told Armenian News-NEWS.am on Friday

Asked what Oskanian’s status was during the interrogation, his lawyer said that he had to give a testimony as he had applied to the police.

To note, Attorney General’s Office of Armenia received petitions by MPs Oskanian and Zurabyan at 4.25 p.m. on Wednesday and the MPs demanded to instigate a criminal case on illegal collecting, and dissemination of information pertaining to personal or family life.

To note, a recording of a private conversation between Levon Zurabyan and Vartan Oskanian, during which they were discussing domestic political matters, was posted on YouTube recently, and this had caused a huge public reaction. The recording was removed from YouTube on Tuesday.