Thousands of people demonstrated in Budapest on Tuesday to demand the resignation of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán after the release of an audio recording that proved the involvement of a member of his government in a corruption case, AFP reported.

Protests against the authorities in HungaryPhoto: Denes Erdos/AP/Profimedia

The protesters’ call came after the tape was released earlier in the day by Peter Magyar, a lawyer and former adviser to Hungary’s populist government, who is now criticizing a government he accuses of corruption.

“We will not allow the biggest political and judicial scandal of the last thirty years to be covered up,” Magyar told the crowd, also calling for the resignation of Attorney General Peter Bolt.

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Several thousand people initially gathered in front of the prosecutor’s office, but the demonstration gained momentum when it moved to the square near the parliament.

Peter Magyar, who was also married to former Justice Minister Judith Varga, posted a two-minute audio recording online Tuesday of two people talking about a corruption investigation involving Varga’s former deputy.

Magyar claims this is a conversation he had in January 2023 with Varga, his wife at the time, implicating Viktor Orbán cabinet member Antal Rogan and his team. “But yes, they ran away,” she says. He claims that this is evidence of manipulation of the investigation.

Varga reacted to the publication of the video by accusing Petr Magyar of forcing her to make these statements.

“He read rumors in the press and because he terrorized me for several days, I said what he wanted me to be released,” she wrote on Facebook.

The government has not responded to the release of the tape, whose authenticity cannot be verified by AFP.

“A domestic quarrel with an intoxicated woman has nothing to do with public life,” Gergelii Gulyas, the head of Viktor Orban’s administration, said in a video message.

Peter Magyar denies his ex-wife’s accusations and says he made the recording after she described to him a “mafia government”.

He claims to have other records relating to members of the Hungarian government.