Jailed opposition politician Nika Melia received another conviction on August 6, as Tbilisi City Court Judge Nino Elieshvili found him guilty of “contempt of court,” involving the alleged “verbal assault” of Judge Tornike Kochkiani.
Melia, co-chair of the opposition Ahali party and one of the leaders of the Coalition for Change, has been in custody since May 2025. In the latest verdict, the court handed him another 18-month jail term, which is set to be absorbed into his existing sentence, according to his lawyer Giorgi Kondakhishvili, who said Melia is expected to leave prison in late December this year “if there are no new surprises in the future.”
Melia was first found guilty in June 2025 and sentenced to eight months in prison for defying the controversial parliamentary commission tasked with examining the alleged crimes committed by former officials. In November 2025, he was found guilty of “contempt of court” for splashing water at Judge Irakli Shvangiradze and sentenced to 18 months in prison. The latest conviction will not add time to his sentence.
However, Melia is also among eight opposition figures charged with sabotage-related crimes, which carry a potential sentence of two to four years in prison. The court had been expected to deliver its verdict in the case in August, but the hearing was adjourned until the fall.
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