Sebastian Kurz, the former chancellor of Austria, is accused of providing false evidence to a parliamentary committee.
When asked about appointments to the state holding company, Mr. Kurz, who resigned in 2021, allegedly misled the committee.
The former People’s Party leader could spend up to three years in jail if found guilty.
In an online statement, Mr. Kurz refuted the accusations and referred to them as “groundless”.
“We look forward to the truth finally coming to light and the accusations proving to be unfounded in court,” he wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
The accusations center on comments Mr. Kurz made in response to questions from the committee in 2020 and 2021, in which he downplayed his involvement in the appointment of the leader of the state holding company, Öbag.
He was significantly more involved in the process than he had initially claimed, according to evidence gathered from chat messages.
He first learned that he was under suspicion for giving false testimony in 2021, while he was still in power.
When the accusations were first made, Mr. Kurz refuted them, saying that the committee was attempting to “twist every word in your mouth”.
According to the prosecution, his trial will start on October 18 and last for three days. The same accusations are being leveled against his former chief of staff, Bernhard Bonelli.
Officials claimed in a statement released on Friday that the two “are accused of giving false testimony before the so-called Ibiza committee of inquiry in the Austrian parliament… regarding the alleged corruptibility of his government”.
Source-BBC
