Parliament strips PiS chairman Kaczyński of immunity

The Sejm agreed to lift Kaczyński's immunity in connection with allegations of assault brought by activist Zbigniew Komosa. This vote saw 241 MPs in favor, 206 against, and no abstentions.

Komosa accuses Kaczyński, leader of the Law and Justice (PiS) party, of assault, saying he hit him twice in the face during an anniversary commemoration of the air crash in Smolensk, Russia, in which Kaczyński's twin brother and president of Poland, Lech, and 95 others were killed in 2010.

Kaczyński said Komosa had repeatedly brought wreaths with offensive inscriptions to the Smolensk monument in Warsaw and that he was acting "in self-defence".

The crash in thick fog near Smolensk was Poland's worst air disaster since World War Two and stunned the country. It also deepened political divisions and revived suspicions about Russia, Warsaw's former Cold War master.

Kaczyński and his supporters believe the crash was not caused by pilot error, as concluded in an official investigation by Poland's centrist government, but by foul play and Russian interference. Russia denied any involvement.

Kaczyński's immunity as a lawmaker has been stripped only regarding Komosa's charges. The Sejm did not revoke his immunity and that of two other PiS lawmakers - Anita Czerwińska and Marek Suski - on accusations of damaging a wreath during that same Smolensk disaster commemoration on April 10, 2024.

In the case against Kaczyński, 177 MPs voted in favor of lifting immunity, while 268 were against, and one abstained. Similar majorities protected Czerwińska and Suski.

The issue in question concerns a motion by the Chief of Police to lift the immunities of Kaczyński, Czerwińska, and Suski for damaging a wreath placed by Komosa during the same event at which he claims he had been hit by the PiS chairman.

Alongside destroying the wreath, Czerwińska and Suski are accused of removing a plaque attached to it.

The plaque’s inscription criticized former President Lech Kaczyński, holding him responsible for the 2010 Smolensk air disaster by allegedly pressuring pilots to land in adverse conditions.

PiS members have repeatedly attempted to remove the inscription, which they consider defamatory to the late president’s memory.

After key votes in the Sejm, Prime Minister Donald Tusk highlighted the importance of securing a majority in the decisive vote to lift Kaczyński's parliamentary immunity for an alleged offense against a citizen. He noted that the result did not surprise him, as he was aware of the views held by various parliamentary groups.

Speaking to journalists after the vote, Tusk downplayed any sense of disappointment with coalition partners, explaining that he had anticipated the outcomes based on the "sentiments and positions of individual groups and MPs."

He stressed the significance of the vote to lift Kaczyński's immunity concerning the alleged offense against Komosa, asserting that "a politician should be held accountable before the judiciary for harm caused to an ordinary citizen."