Former Congress of the People (Cope) president Mosiuoa Lekota filed an application in the High Court in Johannesburg on Tuesday in a bid to hold on to his position as leader of the party, his spokesperson Phillip Dexter said in a statement.

Dexter said that Lekota's court application was to "confirm his position" of the organisation.

Dexter, former national Cope spokesperson, was, along with Lekota, victim of votes of no confidence in them at the party's national congress over the weekend.

Lekota was served with an official notice that he was removed as the party president by general secretary Charlotte Lobe on Monday. He was also notified to vacate his office within 48 hours.

"This [court action] follows a chaotic meeting in Irene over the past weekend, during which the (Mbhazima) Shilowa faction within the party passed a motion of no confidence in the president (Lekota)," Dexter said.

"Mr Lekota on Saturday obtained an urgent interdict to prevent the meeting in Irene from holding elections, after the Congress National Committee [CNC] called a Policy Conference which was turned into an elective congress by the Shilowa faction."

Dexter said that Shilowa's allies circumvented the spirit of the interdict, by suspending Lekota as president and promoting Shilowa to acting president.

"The president (Lekota) confirmed that although he did not prefer the legal route, it seemed to be the only way in which the undemocratic processes of the past weekend could be rectified," said Dexter.

The court application included an application to confirm Dexter's position as head of the party's communications department and to place a ban on the substitution of any Cope members of Parliament or provincial legislatures.

The application is expected to be heard on Wednesday.

Lekota, the country's former defence minister and a former premier of the Free State, led a breakaway from the African National Congress to form Cope in October 2008.

He was joined by Shilowa, the then Gauteng premier, who, although selected as Lekota's deputy, was even in the party's infancy tipped to take over as its leader.

The relationship between the two leaders deteriorated dramatically and resulted in a violent national congress over the weekend, which led to a vote of no confidence in Lekota.