Argentine judge sends cenbank case to higher court

BUENOS AIRES Jan 13 (Reuters) - An Argentine judge on Wednesday accepted a government appeal of an earlier ruling that blocked President Cristina Fernandez's plan to use central bank reserves to pay debts, sending the case to a higher court.

The appeal also is challenging the reinstatement of Argentina's ousted central bank president.

Fernandez used a presidential decree last week to fire Martin Redrado, the central bank chief, after he opposed her plan to use $6.6 billion in reserves to pay Argentina's debt coming due this year.

A judge later temporarily reinstated him and blocked the government plan to use billions of dollars in foreign currency reserves for debt repayments this year.

The decision allows Redrado to remain in the job and prohibits the use of the reserves until a higher court rules.

Turmoil over Fernandez's decision to place reserves in a fund to pay debt has pitted the government against Argentine courts and Congress, where opposition leaders have questioned the legality of the move.

On Tuesday, a U.S. judge froze $1.7 million in assets held by Argentina's central bank in the United States, deepening the dispute and sending bond prices tumbling. (Reporting by Jorge Otaola; writing by Kevin Gray; editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)