Lithuanian social democrats back lifting Paluckas’ immunity for criminal prosecution

The Lithuanian Social Democratic Party (LSDP) will support a parliamentary vote to strip former prime minister Gintautas Paluckas of his legal immunity, party leader Mindaugas Sinkevičius announced on Thursday.

Prosecutors have requested the removal of Paluckas’ immunity to bring charges of unlawful enrichment against him. In a Facebook post, Sinkevičius stated that the party’s position “has been and remains clear: a Seimas member’s legal immunity cannot serve as protection from accountability for alleged criminal acts.”

“The LSDP sees no grounds to oppose lifting Gintautas Paluckas’ immunity,” Sinkevičius wrote. “Only a court can determine his guilt or innocence.”

He emphasised that all LSDP faction members would participate in the vote and warned of consequences for any who failed to attend without valid reason. “If someone thinks party discipline can be dismissed by hiding in the restroom during a crucial vote, that will not go unnoticed,” he told the business daily Verslo žinios.

Paluckas’ immunity is being revoked under a simplified procedure at his own request. Under the Lithuanian Constitution, a Seimas member cannot be prosecuted or detained without parliamentary consent, which requires at least 71 votes in the 141-seat chamber.

Prosecutor General Nida Grunskienė has alleged that Paluckas and his wife acquired assets worth nearly €344,578 through unexplained income.

In a separate interview, Sinkevičius did not rule out moving from his current post as mayor of Jonava to a central government role before the end of the parliamentary term. While he stressed he was not actively seeking a position, he acknowledged potential “political or circumstantial changes” that could prompt such a shift.

“If it happens organically—not because I’m chasing a post—then in the remaining two years of this term, my workplace might move from Jonava to Vilnius,” he said. He reiterated, however, that his primary goal remains seeking re-election as Jonava’s mayor next year and that he has no ambition to become prime minister.