Heated Dispute Between Hovik Aghazaryan and Sasun Mikayelyan: Details

Last week at a meeting of the ruling Civil Contract party, a heated dispute erupted between Hovik Aghazaryan and the president of the Union of Volunteer Soldiers, Sasun Mikayelyan. This was reported by the news outlet "Hraparak."

“When discussing Aghazaryan's mandate, unlike others who reiterated Prime Minister Pashinyan's sentiments and urged that the incident in the National Assembly was disgraceful and that he should take political responsibility and resign, Mikayelyan attempted to take a more 'catholic' stance and declared that the issue is not just about the hearings, but also that Aghazaryan’s name is being circulated in a corruption case,” the publication stated, referring to a criminal proceeding regarding the sheep export scandal, which was initiated based on an individual’s testimony alleging that the MP demanded a $100,000 bribe to assist a novice entrepreneur in organizing the sheep export.

According to the newspaper, after Mikayelyan’s speech, as they say, they tied the dogs up and let Aghazaryan go. He was infuriated by the labels of “corrupt” and “bribe-taker,” stating, “I am the one who takes bribes, are the palaces built by others? Many sitting here have established multimillion-dollar businesses and enriched themselves.” The attendees did not dare to demand names from Aghazaryan, as most of the party members, and especially Sasun Mikayelyan, became millionaires after the change of power. The Mikayelyan clan has generally become the aristocracy of Kotayk, where they own significant property and numerous businesses.