Armenian legal expert condemns arrests of podcast hosts as 'political retribution'

A constitutional law expert has accused the Armenian authorities of carrying out politically motivated arrests after National Security Service (NSS) officers detained two opposition podcast hosts on Thursday morning.

Gohar Meloyan, head of the International Center on Development of Parliamentarism NGO, said NSS officers searched the homes of Imnemnimi podcast co-hosts Vazgen Saghatelyan and Narek Samsonyan before arresting them, obstructing access to their lawyers. The two are reportedly accused of committing hooliganism using information or communication technologies.

Meloyan questioned the legality and proportionality of the searches, arguing that such investigative measures “cannot resolve any legal issue” in cases involving mid-level offenses like hooliganism. She said the raids appeared designed to intimidate the men’s families rather than gather evidence.

She also challenged whether similar cases had ever prompted NSS involvement, noting that “only those critical of the authorities are arrested in this manner.” According to Meloyan, non-political or pro-government suspects are never detained by masked NSS officers for comparable offenses.

The expert accused law enforcement agencies of prioritizing the persecution of critics over confronting the country’s rising crime rates.

“We are dealing with yet another case of political retribution carried out through the law enforcement system, rather than a legal process,” Meloyan said.