Demand for Immediate Publication of a Denial Regarding Defamation Against Narek Karapetyan: Lawyer

As the lawyer of Narek Karen Karapetyan, I demand the immediate publication of a denial regarding the defamation made against Narek Karapetyan. This was stated by lawyer Vardan Aloyan.

“Dear Investigative Committee of the Republic of Armenia, as the lawyer of Narek Karen Karapetyan, I demand the immediate publication of a denial regarding the defamation made against Narek Karapetyan. Your publication dated 20.05.2026 has presented information as a fact, alleging that Narek Karapetyan has 'concealed information about having foreign citizenship, which prevents obtaining the status of a public official' and 'deliberately concealed information about having or having had foreign citizenship by submitting a false application to the Ministry of Internal Affairs’ migration and citizenship service, thus concealing information about foreign citizenship that prevents obtaining the status of a public official.' The aforementioned constitutes defamation.

If the Investigative Committee initiates proceedings based on the received information, it does not have the right to present the information under examination to the public as an established fact, misleading the public and evidently insulting the dignity, honor, and business reputation of the person. This disgraceful phenomenon is even more unacceptable during the pre-election campaigning phase, when a political force and its nominated candidate are also clearly targeted based on obviously false information.

According to Article 10, Paragraph 2 of the Law on the Investigative Committee of the Republic of Armenia, a person holding an independent position in the Investigative Committee cannot be a member of any political party or engage in political activities. A person holding an independent position in the Investigative Committee is obliged to demonstrate political restraint and neutrality in every case.

If the denial is not published immediately in all the places where the committee published the defamatory information, a relevant claim will be filed in court for the protection of rights,” the statement concludes.