There Was a Threat: If I Don't Resign, Then… Ruben Vardazaryan

There has been a threat against me and my family members, stating that if I do not resign, then... today I find myself as a defendant in a fabricated criminal case. This was stated by Ruben Vardazaryan, the suspended President of the Supreme Judicial Council, during the ‘Pressing’ program on 168.am, addressing the reasons for the cessation of his powers.

“There are two different criminal cases—both my wife and I were invited by the Investigative Committee. The Anti-Corruption Committee found that there are certain inconsistencies in our declarations, and that case is still under investigation. My powers have been suspended because the Prosecutor General’s Office has brought charges against me, alleging that I intervened in the court's activities with the intent to obstruct it. This case is in court; one hearing has taken place, and we have sent a request to the President of the Yerevan Court to present evidence that the case has been regulated legally by Judge Shahverdyan. After that, we will decide whether to submit a motion for the judge’s recusal, but it seems to me that we will submit it.”

“I am accused of having obstructed the functions of the judiciary through persuasion and urging during a phone conversation with Judge Andranik Simonian. There are several pieces of evidence that I will publish myself during the evidence investigation phase. I don’t want to create the impression that I want to interfere with the court process related to my case. I have not been wiretapped; according to the judge, he has recorded me. Let’s see what evidence they will attempt to use to prove the charges,” Vardazaryan noted.

He mentioned the moment he realized he was no longer a desired person for the government: “When I publicly expressed my view that the courts in Armenia should operate solely according to the law, based on the principle of the rule of law, and should physically refrain from making politicized decisions. From that moment on, I understood that I was no longer a desirable person in the Supreme Judicial Council, and as you can see, a way has been found to suspend my powers.”

“Nikol Pashinyan has not personally communicated with me, but many representatives of the government have had numerous conversations with me, trying to achieve the result they have today. I have fundamentally opposed this, stating that as long as I am the president of the Supreme Judicial Council, I will do everything in my power to keep judges free from political decisions, not only from the government but also from the influence of opposition political forces. Any judge subjected to other pressures while making decisions must be removed as soon as possible; this is my deep conviction, and I am confident that I will be reinstated as the president of the Supreme Judicial Council. The moment I step back into my office, this provision will be in effect,” he said.

When asked if he could name the representatives of the government who had met with him, Vardazaryan declined to provide details. “If I believed today’s Prosecutor’s Office, I would name names, and I would even provide the specific day and time, including evidence, but since I do not trust the Prosecutor’s Office, I will not do that. I’ll wait for the moment when I trust the Prosecutor’s Office. In our country, two different decisions are made on two similar cases, and when one tries to understand the reason why one case leads to one decision and another leads to a diametrically opposite one, there is no explanation, or it is simply convenient for them,” Vardazaryan remarked.