According to lawyer Giorgi Kondakhishvili, a written request was submitted to the court to ensure that Nika Melia, one of the leaders of the “Coalition for Change,” attends the court hearing. The hearing concerns Melia’s failure to appear before an investigative commission, for which he has been imposed a 50,000 GEL bail.

The lawyer stated that the hearing on this case is scheduled for today at 2:00 p.m., but what happened to Nika Melia yesterday “is an action beyond the legal framework, an arbitrary act that cannot be carried out not only against a political leader but even against an ordinary citizen.”

“Last night, Nika Melia was abducted in a criminal manner by police officers. He is currently being held in a pretrial detention facility. A preliminary hearing on his case is scheduled for today at 2:00 p.m. A few minutes ago, we formally submitted a written request to the court, demanding that, since Nika Melia is being unlawfully detained by police officers, the court ensure his transfer to today’s court hearing, where he will have the opportunity to provide details about the criminal act committed against him yesterday by dozens of police officers. Consequently, it is the accused’s right to attend his court hearing. We have high hopes that Judge Shvangiradze will not violate the law and will ensure the accused is brought to court, where we will learn more details about the crimes committed during his detention last night,” Giorgi Kondakhishvili stated.