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Judge Armen Danielyan of Armenia's Criminal Court of Appeals on Monday denied a motion of second President Robert Kocharyan’s lawyers to resume himself from the high-profile case.

The lawyers of the former president standing trial on charges stemming from the March 1-2, 2008 post-election events in Yerevan, asked Danielyan to recuse himself on 31 January, accusing him of bias.

“After examining the defense motion in the deliberation room, it was decided to reject it. The decision comes into force from the moment it is made and is not subject to appeal,” the judge said.

The court under presiding judge Armen Danielyan continued hearing prosecutors’ appeal against a lower court’s decision to provide the full materials of the criminal case to the defense lawyers.

Earlier in June Armen Danielyan overturned a lower court’s ruling to free Kocharyan from prison pending the outcome of his trial. Kocharyan had been released on 18 May upon the personal guarantees offered by Artsakh’s current and former presidents.

Moreover, the judge did not allow Kocharyan’s lawyers to object to the prosecutors’ demand, cutting short the court hearing.