The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia has opened a case against the journalist after a comment about Simonyan.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia has initiated an administrative case against journalist Tornike Razmadze for an obscene statement on social media. The law enforcement agency claims to be defending the honor of Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze, but the activist insists that the reason was a comment directed at Kremlin propagandists Margarita Simonyan and Vladimir Solovyov.

As reported by "Caucasian Knot", by the beginning of August, around 300 administrative cases related to critical comments about the current authorities of Georgia had been sent to court in two months of the new unit's work against "hate speech". The grounds for initiating cases were sharp statuses on social media, public comments, and obscene inscriptions on posters used by protesters.

As part of the fight against hate speech, offensive comments by citizen Tornike Razmadze, as well as Anna Bdeyan, who insulted Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze on social media, were identified. Proceedings have been initiated under the articles of petty hooliganism and disobedience to police requirements of the Code of Administrative Offenses, reports Newsgeorgia.

Razmadze categorically denies the Ministry of Internal Affairs' accusations, claiming political persecution. According to him, the reason was a Facebook* post from August 18. The journalist published a video comparing Irakli Kobakhidze's rhetoric regarding the Treaty of Georgievsk with statements from Russian propagandists. The video included a fragment from Solovyov's author program, where Simonyan predicts that the Georgian leadership will "once again beg Mother Russia to take them home on their knees," just as "Irakli II once begged on his knees".

"You won't believe what I am being charged with and summoned to court for, where I face either arrest or a huge fine. The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia is holding me accountable for insulting and cursing Russian propagandists Simonyan and Solovyov," Razmadze stated.

Razmadze reported that he is being charged under Article 166, which provides for insults directed at another person, not a public official. "If this were considered an insult to a public official, there would be another article, and the ruling in my case would indicate a different article," the journalist said.

In Razmadze's opinion, the reality is that the authorities cannot deny that the case against him was initiated due to insults directed at Simonyan and Vladimir Solovyov, which is a disgrace for the authorities.

The journalist also appealed to the Human Rights Ombudsman and asked him to record his position on the case initiated against him. "I am addressing the Human Rights Ombudsman of Georgia. I am not asking for your protection or support; I have one simple request - state your position on the case initiated against me. I just want to hear your position," Tornike Razmadze wrote on Facebook*.

The Georgian Young Lawyers' Association (GYLA) has called on the Ministry of Internal Affairs to immediately cease the administrative proceedings and abandon attempts to control critical statements. GYLA emphasizes that persecution for comments on social media creates a dangerous precedent for censorship and is aimed at intimidating society and suppressing sharp political criticism.

Lawyers also point out the absurdity of what is happening: under the pretext of maintaining order, the target of the state becomes criticism of anti-Georgian propaganda from the Kremlin. At the same time, the organization reminded of the practice of the Strasbourg Court, according to which the use of obscene language in public discourse is not in itself grounds to consider a statement as hooliganism, and state bodies are obliged to distinguish permissible emotional political speech from personal insults.

"Caucasian Knot" also reported that in June, a lawyer Shota Tutberidze was fined 4000 lari for a comment on social media, with the complaint filed by the unit combating "hate speech".