Activist confronts Pashinyan over inaction on illegal Yerevan construction

Armenian civic activist Artur Chakhoyan has urged Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan to explain why the Yerevan municipal authorities have not demolished what he says is an illegally built market on community-owned land.

Chakhoyan said that the Yerevan Municipality itself confirmed to Azatutyun TV that the building was going up without a permit, yet no enforcement action has been taken. He accused Yerevan Mayor Tigran Avinyan of applying double standards, ordering the demolition of small garages and kiosks even while related court cases were ongoing, but ignoring larger unauthorized projects.

Chakhoyan stressed that he had faced intimidation and a knife attack following his earlier corruption allegations, while Avinyan has now sued him for defamation.

"This is absurd. The Municipality confirms the violation, but instead of punishing the offender, they try to silence the one who exposed the corruption,” he wrote on Facebook.

The activist argued that such selective enforcement “erodes public trust in justice” and demanded a clear response from the prime minister.