After two days of heated debate, the pro-government majority in the legislature late on March 31 voted to strip opposition Republican Party lawmaker Valeri Gelashvili of his mandate.
Pro-government deputies allege that Gelashvili has business interests that contravene the constitution. The opposition claims the vote fits into a harassment campaign against the ousted parliamentarian.
Unidentified attackers last year assaulted Gelashvili in Tbilisi. The incident occurred just days after the lawmaker had given a Georgian daily an interview, which critics say contained slanderous comments about President Mikheil Saakashvili.
Gelashvili has said that he will appeal his exclusion from parliament before the Constitutional Court.
(Novosti-Gruziya, Civil Georgia, Prime News)