The State Council's Administrative Court announced Tuesday that it could not issue a verdict in the case against President Mohamed Morsi's decision to hold a nationwide constitutional referendum on Saturday.

The court justified its position by saying that the president's decision was considered a "sovereign decision" and could therefore not be overruled by the court.

Late last week, President Morsi reversed a controversial 22 November presidential decree, which protected his decisions from judicial challenge, after critics – who staged mass demonstrations – condemned the declaration as "dictatorial."

The State Council's Administrative Court, however, declared that the president's decision to carry through with the planned referendum could not be overruled without infringing on the president's sovereignty.

Mass demonstrations were staged across Egypt on Tuesday against the planned referendum. The president's supporters, meanwhile, also held mass rallies in support of the scheduled constitutional poll.