Shas: Court undermined the will of 400,000 voters
Shortly after the High Court of Justice disqualified its leader from the ministerial post, the Shas party released a statement accusing the court of making a “political” decision that undermined the will of Shas’ 400,000 voters.
“Today the court effectively ruled that elections are meaningless. The court’s decision is political and fraught with extreme irrationality,” the statement said.
Shas leader Aryeh Deri, a repeat financial offender, was last convicted of tax offenses last January and left the Knesset on a plea deal in which he vowed to retire from political life. Instead, he re-entered the Knesset in November, 11th out of Shas’ 11 seats, and in December the coalition sped up legislation to pave his way into the interior and health ministries.
“The Shas movement as a whole is appalled by the arbitrary and unprecedented decision of the High Court of Justice, which breaks the law and considers it a grave violation of the right to vote and vote, which is the lifeblood of democracy,” the Shas continues -Declaration continued. The party also promises to weigh its next steps and promises to consult with its senior rabbis on how to deal with the court decision.
Earlier this month, Justice Minister Yariv Levin proposed legislation to overturn the adequacy test in which the court nullified Deri’s appointments, and the ruling is likely to pressure the coalition to expedite this or any other solution to Deri’s status as minister to restore.
The decision also comes in the context of a broader Shas-backed fight for judicial reform, a culmination of the Mizrahi Haredi party’s decades-long grievance about overstatement by a court that doesn’t reflect their way of life.
“Large sections of Israeli society today feel excluded from the court,” Shas’ statement said.