South Korea's constitutional court on Monday rejected a motion by the parliament to impeach Prime Minister Han Duck-soo.
With the rejection, Han was immediately reinstated as prime minister and acting president as the ruling took effect right after delivering the decision.
Moon Hyung-bae, acting chief of the court, said the motion was struck down as five justices rejected it while one upheld it amid the dismissal opinion from the remaining two.
The nine-member bench currently has eight justices as one has yet to be appointed by the country's acting president.
Despite confirmation that Han's impeachment process was legitimate, the court said neither evidence nor objective materials identified his involvement in impeached President Yoon Suk-yeol's martial law imposition and insurrection.
The court said Han's refusal to appoint constitutional court justices was unconstitutional, but it noted that evidence and objective materials failed to identify his intention to neutralize the ongoing deliberation on Yoon's impeachment.
The impeachment motion against Han was passed by the opposition-controlled National Assembly on Dec 27 last year following Yoon's impeachment over his short-lived martial law decree.
The court has yet to rule on Yoon's impeachment, with a ruling expected to arrive within days.
Amid the political uncertainties, the South Korean won closed at 1,463.32 won to the U.S. dollar last Friday, but has experienced a slight rebound following the ruling on Han's impeachment case on Monday.
S Korean court rejects Prime Minister Han's impeachment
S Korean court rejects Prime Minister Han's impeachment
