Today’s scheduled trial in the case pitting Tereza Shahverdyan, a Dean at the Vanadzor Pedagogical Institute, against Hetq reporter Andrineh Torosyan, had to be postponed for a third time.

This time, since neither the plaintiff nor her attorney showed up.

Shahverdyan informed the court that she had to attend a scientific council meeting at the Institute and presented documents to that effect.

Shahverdyan is going after Torosyan and Hetq for a May 13, 2011 article entitle, "Unhealthy Passions at the Vanadzor Pedagogical Institute".

It had included a passage that Shahverdyan and Liza Sargsyan, another instructor at the school, had made false charges against dismissed teacher Lusineh Ashughyan.

In her original suit, Shahverdyan had demanded 2 million in defamation and insult compensation from the reporter. The plaintiff later dropped the demand to 200,000.

Shahverdyan had also demanded Hetq publish a retraction of the alleged slanderous passages in the article. The dean still demands a public apology from Torosyan in the pages of Hetq. Shahverdyan has also submitted a new retraction text for Hetq to print.

The court rescheduled the trial for April 23.

Photo: Attorney for the defense, Lusine Hakobyan