Will Pashinyan topple Tsarukyan?

Armenia's State Revenue Committee is demonstrating keen interest in the companies owned by leader of Prosperous Armenia party Gagik Tsarukyan.

Vice-chairman of State Revenue Committee Edward Hovhannisyan said that an audit of entrepreneurs having numerous businesses is conducted more often, Sputnik Armenia reported.

Earlier, Tsarukyan's business partner, Italian businessman Federico Polidori was summoned to the State Revenue Committee of Armenia for an interview.

Gagik Tsarukyan, one of Armenia's biggest businessmen, is the founder of the Prosperous Armenia political party, which is the second largest party with the number of members in the National Assembly, with 26 seats.

The deputy chairman of the Armenian National Congress party Aram Manukyan, speaking with the correspondent of Vestnik Kavkaza, stressed that there is no political dimension in the audit of Tsarukyan’s business.

"I’m sure this is not the case. Prosperous Armenia has a very strong political faction in parliament, with 26 seats. It’s hard to imagine a political campaign unleashed against the party leader. Not only Tsarukyan’s enterprises are being checked, but at all facilities in general. I believe this is the usual work on the part of the State Revenue Committee," he said.

Aram Manukyan said that the relationship between Pashinyan and Tsarukyan is positive. "I believe that there will be no political war, no inter-party dispute. Maybe I'm an optimist, but that's my point. We have bigger problems than checking Tsarukyan," the deputy chairman of the Armenian National Congress party said.

The Prosperous Armenia party's representative Naira Zohrabyan, in turn, stressed that attacking Tsarukyan has already become a tradition of the Armenian authorities. "I cannot make an official statement that it is politically motivated, but I can remind you that for some reason all authorities, both previous and current, are always focused on Tsarukyan's activities. This is not new for us: such extensive checks were carried out under Serzh Sargsyan and under Pashinyan as well. Let's wait for the results of these checks," she said.

At the same time, she assured that Pashinyan and Tsarukyan have normal working relations. "Of course, there can be heated debates in parliament, especially since the majority faction now consists, basically, I wouldn’t use the big word 'politicians', of people who have no political experience. Of course, this affects the background of the parliament, the quality of discussions. But that's what the people wanted during the revolution," Naira Zohrabyan concluded.

Earlier, Vestnik Kavkaza reported that the Yerevan municipality officials have been instructed to investigate and find out the legality of the buildings-structures belonging to Gagik Tsarukyan's family since 2002, and find something in connection with the Olimpavan company.