Constitutional law expert Abdul Aziz Bari has warned of dire consequences from the court of law meddling in politics, adding that this has even caused a civil war in the past.

Aziz said this in reference to the Court of Appeal decision yesterday, which overturned a High Court decision, convicted PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim on the Sodomy II charge and ordered him jailed for five years.

"It is a pity that the judges prefer to take the route taken by a former US Supreme Court chief justice Roger Tanney, who was condemned for upholding slavery by using the US constitution in 1865, a decision that triggered the US civil war," he said in a statement today.

Aziz said the haste of the Court of Appeal in handling Anwar's case, especially if compared with the cautious handling of the Allah case, has raised many concerns.

"The court has a political role in a democracy: that its decision has a political implication or that it is made in a certain political context and scenario.

"As such, it must strive to stay above politics to protect its independence and integrity.

"The court failed to take that into account. It chose not to disentangle itself from a government that has lost its legitimacy to rule; a government that seems unable to play on a level playing field," Aziz added.

Pakatan Rakyat has accused the government of using the courts to surpress the opposition.

DAP chairperson Karpal Singh is due to be sentenced on March 11, after having been found guilty of sedition .

Anwar remains free temporarily, after the Court of Appeal granted him a stay of execution of the sentence yesterday evening, on a bail of RM10,000.

The opposition leader's team will be filing an appeal in the Federal Court on Monday.