Former Disy member of parliament Nikos Sykas will not face criminal charges over allegations of abusing his partner, after the legal service on Tuesday said it had found insufficient evidence to proceed.

“It was held that, in the circumstances and in the absence of a testimony from the complainant, which constitutes an essential part of the evidence which could be put before a court for evaluation, there was insufficient evidence to proceed with criminal prosecution,” it said.

It added that “in this case, any other evidence obtained during the investigation was not considered sufficient in and of itself to proceed with the case before a court”.

Sykas had been accused by his partner of physically abusing her during a holiday in Greece on New Year’s Eve.

She withdrew her complaint against him shortly after the allegations surfaced, but an investigation was nonetheless launched, and the supreme court unanimously lifted his immunity in January, allowing the investigation to go ahead.

In light of the allegations, he was removed from Disy’s party list for last month’s parliamentary election, and as such lost his seat in parliament when the elections took place.

The legal service on Wednesday said that it has been decided “that the case shall remain pending for the period of one year”, and that as such, “the state remains available to provide the complainant with any necessary form of support and protection”.