Lawyer Siranush Sahakyan, the co-founder of "Path of Law", will represent the interests of Vazgen Rshtun in the Supreme Judicial Council in the disciplinary proceedings initiated by the Minister of Justice against Judge Vazgen Rshtun of the Criminal Court of Appeal of Armenia.
It needs to be mentioned that the basis for the request for disciplinary action by the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Armenia is that the judge submitted more than ten cases for reassignment due to his vacation.
Lawyer Siranush Sahakyan said in a conversation with "Hetq" that there were many cases when the examination of the case lasted for years within the framework of judicial control over the pre-trial proceedings. She gave an example of a case when the judge examining a complaint within the framework of judicial control over pre-trial proceedings postponed the session for various reasons: being on a business trip, being in a conference room, technical issues, and eventually the case was handed over for reassignment. The lawyer says that they even submitted a complaint to the Minister of Justice, but no proceedings were initiated. The ministry has decided that there is no apparent basis for initiating disciplinary proceedings.
The Ministry of Justice initiated the case not on the basis of a complaint, but on its own initiative, studying the judge's cases.
“I think it is a significant circumstance here that no one complains about justice or the judge’s activity: only a subordinate person to the Minister of Justice, whose initiative was the basis for the initiation of disciplinary proceedings. In other words, here we see discrimination and the fact that if there is a complaint,it is not processed. On its own initiative a study is carried out, a report written, which becomes the basis for initiating disciplinary proceedings against the judge,” said Siranush Sakahyan.
Update:
The Central Committee, chaired by Gagik Jhangiryan, rejected the request of the RA Ministry of Justice to subject Rshtuni to disciplinary responsibility.