Current and Former Officials Visit Hospitalized Jahangiryan

On June 27, the President of the Supreme Judicial Council, Gagik Jahangiryan, was hospitalized. He underwent surgery for a herniated disc at the Armenia Medical Center. However, it is known that vertebral displacement does not require emergency treatment. The reason for his sudden ‘illness’ was actually the publication of wiretapped recordings by Ruben Vardazaryan and the necessity to present new judges in the National Assembly the following day. The President of the Supreme Judicial Council fell ill to avoid going to the National Assembly and having to explain his lexicon, his 'obligations,' and his interference in criminal proceedings.

Yesterday, we inquired about his health condition. The spokesperson stated that he is currently in the post-operative recovery phase and could not provide further details. According to our findings, he is expected to be discharged from the hospital today. During his treatment, various individuals, including friends and relatives, visited him. Notably, the day before, after midnight, the President of Armenia, Vahagn Khachaturyan, visited him and stayed at the hospital for about an hour. He has a long-standing friendship with Gagik Jahangiryan dating back to the years of the Armenian National Congress.

The following day, former Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan also visited Jahangiryan. We learned yesterday that the Supreme Judicial Council does not intend to initiate proceedings regarding the recording, explaining officially that the entire audio of the conversation has not been released and has been edited. Despite the fact that any small part of that conversation contains a violation of judicial ethics norms and constitutes a criminal act, which fully grounds the initiation of proceedings.