Ikhwanweb :: The Muslim Brotherhood Official English Website

Administrative Court's Decisions Challenge Legitimacy of the next People's Assembly

A few days before the 2010 legislative elections, the nation's Higher Administrative Courts issued a number of decisions that may change the electoral map in several districts. The court orders will most likely be suspended as the ruling National Democratic Party contests them in non-specialized courts.

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  A few days before the 2010 legislative elections, the nation's Higher Administrative Courts issued a number of decisions that may change the electoral map in several districts. The court orders will most likely be suspended as the ruling National Democratic Party contests them in non-specialized courts.

Egyptian courts ordered the cancellation of Sunday's parliamentary election in 24 districts after orders to reinstate the opposition and independent candidates were ignored, said a judicial source on Friday.

 The Administrative Court ruled that elections could not be held in the Tokh, Shubra al-Khaima, Kafr Shukr and Benha districts in the Nile Delta governorate of Qalyubiya due to lawsuits filed by 10 candidates who were excluded from the list of the ruling National Democratic Party (NDP). Earlier, the High Elections Commission had ignored court orders to reinstate them.

 The court, led by Judge Mohammed Handal, in its reasoning, stated that the executive power acted arbitrarily and did not include their names in spite of the absence of legal barriers, thereby violating the law of equal opportunities and preventing an inherent right of individuals willing to run legally.

 Kafr El-Sheikh Court also ruled to cancel the parliamentary elections in 9 districts of the governorate of Kafr El-Sheikh. 

 Alexandria Court, headed by Judge Adel Azab, accepted the lawsuit filed by a MB lawyer in Alexandria and cancelled the vote in 10 of the Mediterranean coastal city's 11 districts on Wednesday.

Hussein Mohamed Ibrahim, vice chairman of the MB parliamentary bloc, considers it conclusive evidence and a grave violation committed by the state against the opposition and independent MB candidates, warning of the state's failure to implement long-standing judgments. Accordingly, he noted that the next parliament's legitimacy, as well as its decisions and laws are contestable.

Observers and political analysts see that these judgments may be an attempt to challenge the legality of the next parliament. The government is also expected to challenge these provisions and may not implement them as it used to in many verdicts of the past elections.