Lower house strips PM of immunity, opening way for criminal prosecution

The lower house of Parliament has voted to strip Prime Minister Andrej Babis of his parliamentary immunity, opening the way for prosecution. The motion was supported by 111 deputies, 69 deputies of the prime minister's ANO party voted against. Mr. Babis, who is suspected of EU subsidy fraud, has denied any wrongdoing. He told the lower house on Friday that the charges against him had been fabricated by the mafia and political opponents who wanted to remove him from politics. We live in a country where it is possible to commission criminal charges against someone and have them thrown in jail, the prime minister noted.