A Zimbabwean man has filed an urgent court application seeking to have the country’s chief justice jailed for allegedly defying a court order.

The High Court recently ordered Chief Justice Luke Malaba to step down, ruling that President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s decision to extend his tenure by five years was illegal and unconstitutional as the judge was 70 years old.

A recent constitutional amendment passed by parliament raised the retirement age of senior judges from 70 to 75.

But the High Court ruled any constitutional amendment needed to be put to a referendum.

Mr Malaba returned to work this week, according to a state-run newspaper, after the justice minister and attorney general appealed the ruling.

The Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum’s Executive Director Musa Kika filed his urgent application on Tuesday.

He argues that the appeal does not suspend the lower court’s ruling.

He wants Mr Malaba jailed for six months but says the sentence should be suspended if he ceases to work.