“MP’s immunity is an instrument of democracy, which is known in all democratic countries,” said professor in law Ognyan Gerdzhikov, speaking for FOCUS News Agency in a comment on the legal status of lawmakers.

“The aim of MP’s immunity, mostly the immunity of oppositional legislators, is to not allow their persecution by the ruling during their mandate to that they are adequate representatives of their political force. This is the meaning of MP’s immunity,” Gerdzhikov noted.

In his words, immunity is not absolute and can be lifted under certain circumstances and thus be no obstacle in case criminal proceedings are initiated against a lawmaker who broke the law.

Asked whether there other pieces of legislation besides the Constitution that contained legal norms concerning MP’s immunity, the scientist replied: “I am not certain if there are such but what the Constitution contains is sufficient as it is the basic law of a country. It has a direct effect and it is not needed there regulations related to MP’s immunity in other places,” Ognyan Gerdzhikov added.