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MP Mher Sahakyan of the main opposition Hayastan faction in the Armenian parliament blamed last week’s brawl on his pro-government colleague Vladimir Vardanyan’s provocative behavior after being released on Monday.

Sahakyan was detained for allegedly assaulting Vardanyan, who represents the ruling Civil Contract party, at a closed meeting of the parliament committee on legal affairs on Friday.

Speaking to reporters outside the police custody, Sahakyan accused Vardanyan of “aggressive behavior and abuse of power.”

"I tried to reprimand him for such a behavior, demanding respect towards the opposition deputies, which further angered him. He stood up and walked towards me, saying he could shout at whoever he wanted. I acted in self-defense and hit him once," Sahakyan explained.

He denied reports that he hit the pro-government MP with a metal object and stressed that he quickly left the meeting room to avoid a further conflict.