Religious slogans will be permitted in Egyptian election campaigns, according to an amendment made to the electoral law by the Shura Council, the body currently holding legislative powers

On Monday, the Shura Council's legislative committee cancelled Article 60 of the electoral law, which banned the use of religious slogans in electoral campaigning. The amended law will be voted on by the council in plenary, and will then be sent to the president to be ratified.

President of the liberal Reform and Development Party Mohamed Anwar El-Sadat said on Monday that "the amendment will increase the state of political tension and will make sectarian issues more complicated, at a time where we need to unify," reported Ahram Arabic website.

"The amendment is a violation of the new constitution, which bans religious publicity in parliamentary elections," El-Sadat added. "The amendment will not be in the Islamists’ favour, because the poor management of the Muslim Brotherhood and the rest of the Islamists current [is evident]," he explained.

Secretary-general of the Salafist Building and Development Alaa Abu El-Nasr said that: "this is a good development, which gives [parties] a chance to announce their identities and [religious] references, without criticising or offending others."