Hungary's parliament has voted to lift the parliamentary immunity of Prime Minister Peter Magyar and two other lawmakers, allowing prosecutors to proceed with separate criminal investigations.

According to Hungarian media, motions to lift the immunity of Prime Minister Magyar, Fidesz lawmaker Balazs Hanko and Christian Democratic People's Party (KDNP) lawmaker Miklos Sesztak were approved during an extraordinary parliamentary session.

Each motion passed with 139 votes in favour. No votes were cast against the motions and there were no abstentions, while lawmakers from Fidesz and the KDNP did not participate in the vote.

The investigation involving Magyar stems from an incident that allegedly took place at a nightclub in Budapest on June 21, 2024. Prosecutors accuse him of taking the mobile phone of a man who was filming him before throwing the device into the Danube River.

Magyar, who had publicly requested that his parliamentary immunity be lifted, rejected allegations that his actions amounted to theft. He described the case as politically motivated and said he wanted the judicial process to move forward so he could clear his name.

The case had previously been referred to the European Parliament while Magyar was serving as a member of the European Parliament. Prosecutors requested that his parliamentary immunity be waived, but the European Parliament rejected the request, preventing the investigation from proceeding at that time.

After Magyar entered the Hungarian Parliament as a member of parliament in May and later assumed the office of prime minister, prosecutors reopened the investigation and submitted a new request to the Hungarian Parliament seeking the suspension of his parliamentary immunity.

The parliament also voted to lift the immunity of Fidesz lawmaker Balazs Hanko and KDNP lawmaker Miklos Sesztak in connection with separate investigations. The cases are unrelated to the proceedings involving Magyar.

The vote clears the way for Hungarian prosecutors to continue their investigations, although lifting parliamentary immunity does not constitute a finding of guilt or the filing of formal criminal charges.(ILKHA)