President Morsi overturns Constitutional Court ruling, reinstates Senate

Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi has reinstated the country’s Senate, known as Shura Council, after the country’s Supreme Constitutional Court voted to nullify the upper house of the parliament.

Egypt’s presidential office said in a statement on Sunday that the upper house of the parliament will maintain its legislative powers until a new parliament is elected.

Morsi overturned the court decision hours after the top court ruled earlier on Sunday that the country’s Senate and the panel that drafted the constitution were illegally elected and must be dissolved.

Egypt’s highest court announced its decision to examine the legitimacy of the Senate days after the country’s new constitution was signed into law.

The lower house of the parliament, dominated by Muslim Brotherhood lawmakers, was dissolved by a military decision in line with a ruling by the same court prior to the presidential elections in June 2012.

No date has been set for the parliamentary elections yet, but President Mohamed Morsi had previously hinted that the vote could be held in October 2013.

The latest developments spell a fresh political turmoil and the clash of institutions in Egypt.