Tbilisi Mayor denies violence, says activists staged provocation

Tbilisi Mayor Kakha Kaladze has denied attacking civic activists in Varketili district yesterday, instead saying they tried to 'stage a provocation'.

However, the activists said they wanted to ask Mayor Kaladze a question, when the latter assaulted them verbally and physically.

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Having filed a lawsuit against Kaladze, one of the plaintiffs Dimitri Bidzinashvili said police should examine the video footage.

Referring to the Varketili incident, Mayor Kaladze told journalists today that he did not assault anybody. However, he added that if police thought that his behaviour was violent, they should of course investigate.