The Administrative Court on Tuesday decided to delay ruling on lawsuits appealing the dissolution of Parliament and the recently-issued supplementary Constitutional Declaration until 7 and 10 July, respectively.
Former presidential candidate and human rights activist Khaled Ali, The Arab Network for Human Rights Information and the Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression had filed a lawsuit before the court against controversial additions to the interim constitution issued by the ruling military council last week that largely diminishes the powers of the country’s elected president.
The same court had also started considering other lawsuits by the speaker of the dissolved People’s Assembly, Mohamed Saad al-Katatny, assembly member Essam Sultan, and lawyer Nizar Ghorab against an earlier ruling by the Supreme Constitutional Court which dissolved the assembly, citing the unconstitutionality of the electoral law.
The petitioners challenged the constitutional court’s jurisdiction and the constitutionality of the ruling military’s ensuing decision to dissolve the parliament.
They said denying MPs entry to the assembly’s building was a flagrant breach of their legal rights as representatives of the Egyptian people.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
