An administrative court adjourned on Monday its verdict to 3 September on the cancellation of Prime Minister Sherif Ismail’s decision to dismiss former justice minister Ahmed Al-Zind from his position.
According to the lawsuit, the dismissal decision is not legal for several reasons. The dismissal of a minister of justice or minister of defence should be decided by the president, which would refer to the alleged unconstitutionality of the prime minister’s decision.
The lawsuit claims that the prime minister cannot dismiss any minister who was primarily appointed by Al-Sisi, and denied claims that Al-Zind was appointed by Ismail and stressed that the appointment decision came from Al-Sisi.
Al-Zind was dismissed from his position in March over his controversial statements made during a TV interview, during which he said: “I will imprison anyone who does wrong, even the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) himself.”
Despite backtracking immediately from what was said and pleading for forgiveness in the same interview, controversy erupted over his statement. He was dismissed from his position the following day.
Al-Zind was infamous for his feuds with judges and several media figures during his tenure as a minister and as head of the Judges Club. His list of accusations is extensive.
His most controversial move came when he was the head of the Judges Club, when he terminated the membership of about 75 judges who belonged to the ‘independence current’, which sought judiciary independence from the state after they signed a statement supporting ousted president Mohamed Morsi.
