Initiative files criminal complaint against authorities

PanARMENIAN.Net - Prime minister Nikol Pashinyan and associates are accused of orchestrating attacks aimed at discrediting the Armenian Apostolic Church, including hate speech, interference with religious activity, breaches of privacy, and abuse of office. The Hayaqve initiative presented its findings and legal analysis to the Prosecutor General’s Office.

May 29: during a government meeting, Pashinyan criticised church conditions as “converted into storage rooms.” June 2: he stated that if Catholicos Karekin II is found to have violated celibacy and fathered a child, he cannot remain head of the church.

On the night of June 25–26, Archbishop Bagrat was detained for two months and sent to the Yerevan‑Center penitentiary. On June 28, criminal charges were brought against Archbishop Mikael of the Shirak Diocese under articles relating to usurpation of power, breach of territorial integrity, and calls to overthrow the constitutional order; he was also imprisoned for two months.

According to Sputnik Armenia, the initiative’s coordinator, Avetik Chalabyan, stated that these actions are documented and legally assessed. The criminal complaint alleges that authorities have engaged in a systematic campaign to undermine the church’s legitimacy, equating it to a terrorist organization — thereby violating several articles of Armenia’s Criminal Code including incitement of religious hatred, obstruction of religious activity, violations of personal privacy, and official misconduct.