Hakob Simidyan Withdraws Candidacy: 'Hraparak'

Hakob Simidyan, who was dismissed from the position of Minister of Environment in July, has withdrawn his candidacy for a member of the Board of the ruling Civil Contract (CP) party just days before the elections. This was reported by 'Hraparak'.

According to reports, he was unable to overcome his grievances towards Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and decided to express his attitude in this way. Although Simidyan's resignation had long been an expected move due to widespread dissatisfaction with his work in the government, the last straw was his audacity to contradict Pashinyan during a political meeting of the ruling party in Goris, where he spoke out against certain campaigning rules for the elections. It is said that Pashinyan did not tolerate this and dismissed him two days later.

Sources from the newspaper indicate that Simidyan did not truly campaign among the CP delegates, believing that participating in campaigning according to the disputed rules he criticized was a mistake. It remains unclear what specific issues he was dissatisfied with.

The newspaper attempted to clarify the situation directly with him, but he declined to comment further, only confirming that he has withdrawn his candidacy for the Board. When asked whether he was leaving the party, Simidyan assured that such a thing could not happen.