Judge Arman Hovhannisyan: 'They Want to Interfere with My Independence'

Judicial independence is at stake with the disciplinary proceedings initiated against me by the Ministry of Justice of Armenia, which will not succeed. This was stated by Judge Arman Hovhannisyan in a conversation with NEWS.am.

Judge Hovhannisyan confirmed that the proceedings are related to his decision not to detain Ashot Minasian, the commander of the 'Sisakan' detachment, also known as 'Ashot Iron.'

'I will work the same way I have always worked. I prefer not to work at all rather than work in a way that some people envision,' he noted.

In the judge's opinion, the proceedings at the Supreme Judicial Council will be public, and everyone will see that his decision is substantiated.

Responding to the statement made by the Chairman of the Supreme Judicial Council, Garik Jhangiryan, regarding this decision, Judge Hovhannisyan said, 'I responded to Jhangiryan quite rudely. He expressed an opinion about my decision, stating that it's unclear to him how these individuals could be released. I told him that Jhangiryan is not familiar with that judicial act, and it's unclear to me how he can express such an opinion without being acquainted with it.'

It is noteworthy that the initiation of disciplinary proceedings against Judge Arman Hovhannisyan has sparked outrage among several lawyers. They argue that this move aims to strip Judge Hovhannisyan of his impartiality.