Junts per Catalunya has restarted its internal disciplinary investigation into former Catalan health minister Toni Comín after a four-month pause. The party’s Commission of Guarantees had suspended the process while awaiting developments in Comín’s legal status and the possible impact of Spain’s amnesty law. The case concerns allegations from a former parliamentary aide who says she worked with Comín in the European Parliament. Comín denies the allegations and disputes that she was his adviser.
Junts opened its proceedings in January 2025 after learning of a complaint filed with the European Parliament’s Advisory Committee. The former aide alleged unwanted physical contact and sexual insinuations, along with intrusive questions about her personal life and proposals involving sexual encounters with a third party. Comín has rejected the accusations and said he is prepared to defend himself before the relevant authorities. Nació Digital described the allegations as a political blow, writing that an investigation into alleged workplace and sexual harassment had also “left him shaken.”
The party initially paused its inquiry while Comín’s legal circumstances affected his ability to take up his European Parliament mandate. After the 2024 European elections, a Spanish Supreme Court arrest order prevented him from completing the formalities required to assume his seat. The case stems from proceedings linked to the 2017 Catalan independence referendum and Comín’s subsequent departure for Belgium. Junts’s disciplinary process is separate from the Parliament’s procedures and any criminal proceedings.
The European Parliament inquiry followed a separate course. A report published by Moncloa.com, citing Crónica Global, said the parliamentary inquiry was closed in March 2026 and described the alleged conduct as a “scenario of abuse of authority.” The reported allegations included unwanted touching and repeated questions about the complainant’s sexual life, as well as humiliating treatment and alleged threats of dismissal. The complainant reportedly described stress and anxiety. Comín continued to deny the allegations and said Parliament had not contacted him for his account.
The same reporting said the Parliament was considering whether the file could be reopened after the change of mandate or whether a new complaint would be required. That institutional question is separate from Junts’s internal inquiry, which follows the party’s own procedures. The reported closure of the parliamentary file so did not determine the outcome of the party process.
Comín’s legal position later changed. In October 2026, after the Constitutional Court endorsed applying the amnesty law to relevant proceedings linked to the independence referendum, the Supreme Court lifted the arrest order against him. Comín returned to Madrid to complete the formalities for his European Parliament mandate and collect his credentials. Europa Press reported that he pledged the Constitution “for the mandate of 1 October.” Lifting the arrest order did not close the criminal case, and further judicial steps remained. Comín described his Madrid visit as procedural, telling El Periódico it was “not a return from exile.”
Comín has declined to comment on the internal proceedings, citing the confidentiality required of those involved. He has reiterated his denial of the allegations and his readiness to defend himself. The case has drawn attention in Catalonia, where legal and political disputes involving former officials remain sensitive. Other high-profile legal battles involving Catalan authorities have also made headlines, including the recent trial of health officials over pandemic-era decisions, as reported in this coverage of the Covid vaccine delay case.
Junts’s investigation is a party disciplinary process, separate from criminal proceedings and the European Parliament’s internal procedures. The party’s conclusions could affect Comín’s future within Junts, while the parliamentary file and criminal case follow their own procedures and timelines.
The case shows how allegations involving a former MEP can trigger separate processes within a party and Parliament, alongside national proceedings. Each addresses different questions and follows its own rules, while Comín continues to deny the alleged conduct.
