Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan and his allies in the National Assembly discredited the vote of no-confidence as a “foreign conspiracy” to cause a regime change in the country.
Amidst the commotion caused by the United Opposition members, the deputy speaker rejected the vote of no-confidence, terming it as “foreign-funded ploy against the PM and a violation of Article 5 of the country’s constitution.” In a televised speech, Prime Minister Khan congratulated the Pakistani nation on foiling the alleged conspiracy and announced that he had advised the president to dissolve the assemblies. The president complied and the assemblies were dissolved and Khan was de-notified as the prime minister of the country.
Distraught by the developments, the United Opposition – an alliance of the major political parties in the country including PPP, PML(N), JUI-F and others – took to the Supreme Court of Pakistan to file a case against the speaker of the National Assembly and the prime minister. The apex court started hearing arguments from Khan’s legal team, his allies and the opposition on Monday but then adjourned the hearing till 12pm on Tuesday. There was no immediate explanation for the adjournment.
On Sunday, Khan’s ally in the National Assembly, Deputy Speaker Qasim Suri, dissolved the assembly to sidestep a vote of no-confidence that the prime minister was certain to lose. As per the constitution, a vote of no-confidence needs 172 votes to succeed – the United Opposition had secured 197 votes. Seeing his adversaries securing a landslide victory, Khan acted promptly and preempted the vote of no-confidence.
The developments marked the latest in the escalating tensions between Imran Khan and the opposition, which has been backed by defectors from Khan’s own party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, and Muttahida Quomi Movement, his allies.
As per reports, Khan was initially optimistic that he would win the vote of no-confidence easily, but as the opposition started gaining numbers, his confidence failed. He resorted to violent rhetoric laden with threats and vituperations, against his opponents.
Khan reportedly threatened the defectors from his party who had joined the opposition ranks, citing an obscure clause from the constitution and promising that they would be prosecuted if they voted against him in the parliament. The month-long political drama reached an anticlimactic ending on Sunday when Khan finally revealed the ‘trump card’ he had been promising.
Analysts both in Pakistan and outside claim that the country’s powerful military, who is credited for bringing Khan into power, has left its protégé at the eleventh hour. As the political drama was unfolding, the military announced that it is “neutral” and will not interfere in the political process. The opposition seized the opposition and filed a vote of no-confidence against the prime minister.
Since the assemblies were dissolved, Khan is no longer the prime minister of the country. He has to put forward names for the caretaker prime minister of the country. Therefore, Khan named former Chief Justice of Pakistan, Gulzar Ahmed, as the caretaker prime minister.