Accusations of treason provoke a brawl at meeting of Yerevan Council  of Elders

ArmInfo.A brawl broke out between representatives of the ruling Civil Contract faction and the opposition at a meeting of the Yerevan Council of Elders on June 23.

During the meeting, chaired by Deputy Mayor Armen Pambukhchyan, a  verbal altercation ensued between government and opposition  representatives, accompanied by mutual accusations.

In particular, after Deputy Mayor Suren Grigoryan's speech,  representatives of the Mother Armenia opposition faction began to  harshly criticize the ruling party. In response, Pambukhchyan called  the participants to order, but the argument continued.

During the altercation, the deputy mayor stated that the leader of  the Mother Armenia movement was being investigated for treason and  called on the opposition to refrain from making such statements.  Tensions in the hall then escalated. At one point, after the  opposition had made some familiar remarks, Pambukhchyan declared that  "the dispute could be continued outside the meeting room."

Soon, the verbal conflict escalated into a scuffle, and then a fight.

Sargis Ter-Yesayan, a member of the Council of Elders from the Mother  Armenia faction, speaking to journalists after the incident, bearing  marks from beatings, claimed that representatives of the Civil  Contract movement were the instigators of the brawl. He claimed that  several people attacked him simultaneously, which, in his opinion,  characterizes the ruling party's methods.

Suren Grigoryan, in turn, told journalists that the incident was  caused by the opposition's inability to perceive and adequately  respond to harsh political statements. Security service personnel, as  well as Yerevan Mayor Tigran Avinyan, intervened to resolve the  situation, after which the meeting was adjourned.