The chair of the "Aq Jol" party, Azat Peruashev, has named the reason why Askar Sadykov was stripped of his deputy mandate.
The faction leader stated on his Telegram channel that Sadykov was expelled from the party for harassment.
"A number of appeals were received regarding A. Sadykov, which were considered and confirmed at the plenum. The appeals concerned his actions, including those related to exceeding his official authority and violating ethical standards. Separate facts can be presented for each complaint, but I think one example will suffice", the statement reads.
According to Peruashev, a parliamentary employee complained of repeated harassment from Sadykov. As evidence, she provided a screenshot of messages on WhatsApp, which Peruashev published online with her consent. However, the screenshot of the correspondence was later removed at the girl's request.
"She ignored the offensive propositions from 17 April, without replying. Nevertheless, on 15 May he repeated similar actions, and, judging by the statement, such harassment was carried out by A. Sadykov regularly on other days as well", the statement reads.
The leader of "Aq Jol" said that the victim of the harassment could not seek legal protection due to A. Sadykov's immunity as a deputy.
"During the plenum, in response to my comment about the inadmissibility of the revealed unlawful actions, A. Sadykov stated that he is a deputy and 'has the right to say what he wants to whom he wants.' Therefore, we removed this 'obstacle', and the decision taken to strip A. Sadykov of his deputy status allows the victim to defend her honour and dignity", Peruashev stated.
In conclusion, the party chair reported that there are other examples of Sadykov's unworthy behaviour which may require the attention of law enforcement agencies.
"As you can see, the situation is rather sordid, and I really did not want to read someone else's correspondence, let alone publish it. However, some people misinterpreted our silence, including at the instigation of A. Sadykov himself, who in one interview even compared himself to the heroic victims of the 1937 repressions as someone who suffered 'for the truth'. We are forced to show what kind of truth this is, and believe me, there are other episodes and documents. The plenum decided to expel A. Sadykov from the party based on specific facts. This includes, among other things, preventing these situations from leading to more dangerous consequences", concluded Azat Peruashev.
For context, the deputy from the "Aq Jol" party, Askar Sadykov, lost his mandate at the end of August. Later, the party chair, Azat Peruashev, stated that the grounds for stripping the deputy of his mandate and expelling him from the party were "the commission by A. Sadykov of actions unacceptable for the status of a deputy".