Tigran Avinyan illegally took over as Yerevan mayor, councilor reiterates
The Armenian government members have confirmed that Tigran Avinyan took up the Yerevan mayor’s seat illegally, Samvel Hakobyan, a Yerevan City Council member from the opposition Mother Armenia bloc, insisted on Friday.
Avinyan, who represents Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's Civil Contact party, was sworn in at a special meeting of the Yerevan City Council on October 13.
The opposition argues that the meeting lacked the required quorum of councilors (more than half of them) and Avinyan was not authorized to be sworn into office.
Hakobyan announced his faction’s decision to challenge the legality of Avinyan’s inauguration in court last week.
He stated that Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructures Gnel Sanosyan and his deputy Vache Terteryan confirmed the meeting was held in violation of the law.
“We expect the court to abide by the law and grant the lawsuit,” the councilor wrote on Facebook.