Egypt’s Supreme Administrative Court rejected on Saturday an appeal demanding the reinstatement of parliament, saying it was no longer legal.

Egypt’s Supreme Administrative Court rejected on Saturday an appeal demanding the reinstatement of parliament, saying it was no longer legal.

According to a judicial source, the court said that the Egyptian Parliament “no longer exists legally since the June 14 ruling by the Supreme Constitutional Court (SCC)" deeming it unconstitutional and ordering its dissolution.

Officials in the Muslim Brotherhood and its political arm the Freedom and Justice Party had hoped that the Supreme Administrative Court would support their demand for parliament to be reinstated.
But the court said that any SCC decision could not be overturned.

The lower house was elected late last year, with Islamists winning an overwhelming majority. But on June 14 the SCC ruled it invalid, saying there were irregularities in the electoral law.

The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF), which ruled after Hosni Mubarak was ousted in last year's popular uprising, then dissolved the house. The army was given legislative control, provoking outrage among those wishing to see the military cede power.

On July 8, President Mohamad Mursi, who had risen through the Muslim Brotherhood's ranks, issued a decree ordering the reinstatement of parliament, which the SCC froze two days later.

In August Mursi ordered the surprise retirement of his powerful defense minister and scrapped a constitutional document which handed sweeping powers to the military, in a move some said was aimed at ending the SCAF's power.