Ara Grigoryan's Facebook Post Does Not Constitute 'Severe Insult' to Pashinyan; Criminal Case Rejected

The former MP and head of the Union of Armenian Volunteers, Manvel Grigoryan's son, Ara Grigoryan, will not face criminal charges for a Facebook post regarding Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. According to the Public Relations and Media Department of the Armenian Police, the initiation of a criminal case has been rejected due to a lack of evidence of a crime.

It should be noted that preliminary materials against Ara Grigoryan were being prepared without a complaint from the 'victim.' The subject of examination was a screenshot of the Facebook post wherein the citizen criticized the Prime Minister, which the police interpreted as containing a serious insult directed at Pashinyan.

Furthermore, following recent amendments and additions to the Armenian Criminal Code, Article 137.1 has been introduced, which provides for criminal liability for causing severe insult to an individual. So far, nine criminal cases have been instituted under this article.