Three days before vote, prosecutors seek to lift MP Bozhanov's immunity

Bulgaria's acting Chief Prosecutor Vanya Stefanova has asked parliament to lift the immunity of a lawmaker, identified by prosecutors only by the initials B.B. and as deputy chair of a parliamentary group. Broadcaster bTV, the news site OFFNews and other outlets identified him as Bozhidar Bozhanov, co-chair of Yes, Bulgaria and deputy leader of the Democratic Bulgaria group. The request, proposed by a prosecutor at the Sofia City Prosecutor's Office, comes in the final days of the campaign before Sunday's presidential election.

The request concerns a criminal case at the Sofia City Court that has been suspended since Sept. 1. Bozhanov returned to parliament after the April election and has had immunity since taking the oath on April 30. He is charged with abuse of office during his time as e-government minister in 2022. Prosecutors allege he handed an agency head a technical specification drafted in breach of the rules for a tender worth nearly 18 million leva (about 9.2 million euros). The indictment was filed in October 2025. The city court sent it back in April, but an appeals court ordered the case to proceed in June.

It is the second request on the same charge; in 2025 Bozhanov waived his immunity in writing. The trial can now resume only with parliament's approval or his renewed written consent. Bozhanov rejects the charges, calling them a politically motivated attack, according to media reports. In September he urged prosecutors to file the request, saying: "As soon as the request arrives, I will waive my immunity, as I did in the previous parliament." There was no immediate reaction to the new request. He is presumed innocent until a final verdict.