Associated Press in Cairo
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 23 October 2012 14.46 BST
Supreme constitutional court will decide whether to disband 100-member assembly writing charter
The Egyptian high administrative court, which has referred upwards the decision on whether to disband the contitutional panel. Photograph: Nasser Nasser/AP
An Egyptian court has referred the decision on whether to disband the panel writing the country's new constitution to the highest court – a new twist in a dispute over the charter that could herald a showdown between Islamists and the top court's secular judges.
Egypt is near the final phase in the critical process of drafting a new charter after the uprising last year that toppled the autocratic president, Hosni Mubarak.
The work – and the composition – of the 100-member constitutional assembly tasked with writing the draft has been the subject of a fierce debate across the political spectrum.
Islamists and liberals are haggling over several disputed articles in the charter, some of which will determine the role of religion in the nation's affairs and the independence of the judiciary.
Supporters of the panel say it was set up by an elected parliament and broadly represents Egypt's political factions. Critics say the process is dominated by majority Islamists, such as the Muslim Brotherhood from which Egypt's new president, Mohammed Morsi, hails, and more radical groups that will enshrine Islamic law as dominant in the constitution.
Instead of ruling on a petition challenging the legitimacy of the panel, which was submitted by liberals, Judge Nazeh Tangho of the high administrative court on Tuesday sent the case to the supreme constitutional court.
His announcement was welcomed by cheers and chants of "God is Great" from Islamist lawmakers, while liberal rivals shouted: "The people want to cleanse the judiciary."
Tangho gave no explanation for his decision and it remains unclear when the top court could rule on the petition. But experts say the court will look into a law signed by Morsi in July that gave the constitutional panel legal immunity.
The referral sets the stage for a showdown between the supreme constitutional court, packed with secularist judges, and Egypt's ruling and powerful Brotherhood. The same court dissolved the Brotherhood-led parliament, deemed the election law unconstitutional and turned down Morsi's attempt to restore it upon his election in June.
With the nation increasingly polarised, and mistrust between Islamists and other groups growing, Egypt's judiciary has emerged as a final arbiter for settling most disputes. More than 40 legal challenges have been presented to the country's top administrative court demanding the dissolution of the panel writing the charter.
Egypt constitution decision referred to country's highest court | World news | guardian.co.uk
