Opposition politician Irakli Okruashvili sentenced to eight months in prison for defying parliamentary commission

A Tbilisi court has sentenced opposition figure Irakli Okruashvili to eight months in prison for refusing to comply with a summons issued by a temporary investigative commission of the Georgian Parliament over alleged crimes under the previous United National Movement government. 

The ruling, handed down by Judge Tamar Mchedlishvili on Friday, also bars Okruashvili from holding public office for a period of two years.

Okruashvili, a former defence minister and a critic of the ruling Georgian Dream party, did not attend the court hearing and was not granted the opportunity to deliver a final statement.

The case stems from Okruashvili’s refusal to appear before the parliamentary commission on 26 March, where he had been called to provide testimony. He was charged under Article 349 of Georgia’s Criminal Code, which penalises failure to comply with requests from temporary investigative bodies established by Parliament.