Poland’s Constitutional Court in Turmoil: Judge Suspends Court President, Nawrocki Turns Plane Around as Opposition Cries “Coup”

The Poland Constitutional Tribunal crisis erupted with almost no warning. At six o’clock on the evening of October 30, a brief notice appeared on the court’s website announcing that its president and vice president had been suspended. Within hours, the website had crashed, riot police had sealed off the court building in Warsaw, crowds were chanting in the street, and the head of state had ordered his aircraft to reverse course over Africa.

What began as a terse online announcement has become the sharpest confrontation yet in a years-long struggle over who controls Poland’s highest constitutional court.

The Announcement That Started It All

The notice stated that Bogdan Świeczkowski, president of the Tribunal, and Vice President Bartłomiej Sochański had been removed from their duties. Shortly afterward, the site went offline.

The suspension was declared by fellow judge Anna Korwin-Piotrowska, who said the step was necessary to re-establish lawful order at the court. Citing her status as the longest-serving member of the bench, she announced that she was now in charge of the Tribunal.

The court’s official account on X responded in dramatic terms, describing the events as a coup d’état.

A President Returns Mid-Flight

President Karol Nawrocki was airborne on his way to Senegal when the news reached him. He instructed the crew to turn back and posted an explanation online, saying that in a moment like this the president’s place was in Poland and that he was abandoning the trip to return home.

By early Saturday, his chief of staff Paweł Szefernaker confirmed that Nawrocki had physically entered the Tribunal building, accompanied by Zbigniew Kapiński, First President of the Supreme Court. The image of the head of state walking into a court surrounded by police captured how far the dispute had escalated.

Protests and a Police Cordon

As night fell on Friday, riot police deployed around the court and blocked entry. Dozens of demonstrators gathered outside to object to what they regard as the illegitimate ousting of the court’s leadership by Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s pro-European government. Some in the crowd shouted that Tusk was a traitor.

Świeczkowski himself appeared outside the building, addressing supporters through a megaphone as officers kept the entrance closed.

A Diplomat Resigns in Protest

The fallout reached beyond Warsaw. Jakub Kumoch, Poland’s ambassador to China, announced that he could no longer serve in light of what was happening at home. He said he had tendered his resignation and requested to be recalled.

Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski, who was in the United States for the G20 summit, replied bluntly on X. He described the end of Kumoch’s posting as unprofessional and stated that the former envoy no longer spoke for the Republic.

Years of Conflict Over the Courts

To understand why a judicial suspension could trigger such a reaction, it helps to look back nearly a decade.

The national-conservative Law and Justice party, known as PiS, governed Poland from 2015 to 2023. During that period, critics at home and in the European Union accused it of bringing key judicial bodies, including the Constitutional Tribunal, under political control. The EU imposed financial penalties on Poland over those changes.

The Tribunal under PiS-era leadership frequently sided with Polish legislation over EU law, and Brussels viewed it as too closely aligned with the nationalist government of the day. Świeczkowski rose to head the court during that era.

Tusk’s Government Makes Its Case

When Tusk’s coalition took office in 2023, it promised to restore judicial independence. That effort has been repeatedly stalled. Two successive presidents sympathetic to PiS, most recently Nawrocki, have used their veto power to block the government’s measures.

In recent weeks the government has intensified its push to remove judges appointed under PiS. Tusk has specifically accused Świeczkowski of preventing judges selected by the current parliamentary majority from taking their seats.

On Friday evening, the prime minister defended the suspension online. He argued that rebuilding the rule of law after what he called years of lawlessness under PiS is a hard and sometimes painful task that demands firm action, and he insisted there is no alternative path. The message echoed remarks he made in August at the Campus Polska event, where he said his government had a plan to fill the Tribunal with properly appointed judges, acknowledging that not everyone would approve of how it was done.

PiS Calls for Resistance

The opposition reacted with fury. Former Justice Minister Zbigniew Ziobro, one of the architects of the earlier judicial overhaul, described the suspension as a flagrant criminal assault on the constitutional order. He urged supporters to resist in a manner that was loud, unwavering, united, and unafraid.

PiS remains the largest opposition force in parliament, and its ability to mobilise crowds adds a volatile element to the days ahead.

Why This Moment Matters

Several threads make this episode especially consequential:

Constitutional legitimacy: Two rival figures now claim authority over the court, raising the question of whose rulings carry legal weight.

Executive versus government: The president and prime minister are openly on opposite sides, with Nawrocki’s dramatic return signalling he intends to intervene.

EU relations: Brussels has long pressed Poland on judicial independence, and how it reacts to Tusk’s methods will shape the government’s standing in Europe.

Public order: Police barricades, street protests, and calls for resistance suggest the dispute will not stay confined to courtrooms.

What Comes Next

The immediate questions are whether Świeczkowski and Sochański will accept the suspension, whether Nawrocki can use his office to reverse it, and whether PiS will escalate to nationwide demonstrations. The government, for its part, appears determined to press ahead.

Poland has lived with a divided judiciary for years. The events of October 30 suggest that the long stalemate is giving way to open confrontation, and the outcome will shape the balance of power in the country for years to come.