Criminal Prosecution Against Robert Kocharyan to Be Halted, Says Aram Vardevanyan

The Constitutional Court has declared Article 300.1 of the Criminal Code unconstitutional and invalid, stated Aram Vardevanyan, a member of the legal team of Armenia's second President Robert Kocharyan, during a press briefing following the Court's ruling.

"The Constitutional Court emphasized Articles 78 and 79, thus recognizing this unfortunate article as unconstitutional and invalid regarding clarity and proportionality. I regret that this process lasted 3 years; I regret that it was a result of a complicated path, but ultimately, the truth has prevailed," Vardevanyan said.

"It is unfortunate that this should have been recorded in 2021, but today it has been documented and the high court has positioned itself at its heights. This means that there should never have been a criminal prosecution under Article 300.1, and that prosecution will be halted. The Constitutional Court's decision takes effect upon publication, and the decision will be published within three days," the lawyer added. "This means that Article 300.1 no longer exists in the Criminal Code."