Aleko’s punch could not be forgiven by the “generalissimo,” I mean Mr. Mdinaradze, nor by “Georgian Dream.” This is settling scores, — this was stated by Valeri Elisashvili, the father of opposition politician Aleko Elisashvili, who is detained on charges of an attempt to commit a terrorist act, to journalists.

According to Valeri Elisashvili, he was questioned today at the court hearing as a witness. The accused’s father assessed that, among other things, they could not forgive his son for “going to the war in Ukraine.”

“The purpose of Aleko’s detention was to punish him. We have a “generalissimo,” one, I mean Mr. Mdinaradze — he could not forgive this punch, neither could the “generalissimo” nor “Georgian Dream.” This is settling scores, I think so, and it is called political persecution. Yes, he is being punished because he hit Mdinaradze and because of the injustice happening in this building [the court building] to ladies, men, the elderly, etc. Some were dragged by their hair in the corridors… What I saw with my own eyes on television, he could not tolerate. Not all people are incubator chicks; some tolerate, some cannot tolerate and expressed protest.

I have doubts, and if it was him [in the video footage] and not someone else, why did he specifically come to the court building? My son lives in Mtatsminda, the Parliament is three or four hundred meters away, at the same distance is Mr. Kobakhidze’s residence, he would have gone there. Why did he come here on foot from Mtatsminda?” Valeri Elisashvili stated.

According to him, the investigation against his son initially started under the article for damaging someone else’s property, but now he is charged with an attempt to commit a terrorist act. The father assessed that in reality, the charge against his son was aggravated because “this was a political instruction from Shalva Papuashvili.”

“I am a simple person, and while some consider themselves professionals, Speaker of Parliament, etc., we are not fallen from the sky by parachute either, we also understand some things. I would tell my son: I raised you for the love of the country, you love our country more than I do. Aleko Elisashvili, of course, first of all loves his own family, loves God, and loves his own country, his parents, and the rest. He feels sorry for the people in need. He could not tolerate this. He expressed protest, otherwise if he wanted terrorism, when was there a terrorist who would go at 04:00 in the morning and think that no one should be harmed? Probably, he also could not forgive why he went to Ukraine,” Valeri Elisashvili stated.