https://arab.news/r6dq2
- Members of Khan’s party had suggested on Friday they would try to delay the vote as much as possible
- Session was adjourned four times before voting finally began on the motion that could see Khan ousted
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s parliament began voting late on Saturday night on a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Imran Khan, hours after parliament was adjourned for a fourth time before the vote that the country’s Supreme Court has said must be held could take place.
Members of Khan’s party had suggested on Friday they would try to delay the vote as much as possible.
Khan was due to face the no-trust vote last Sunday, but National Assembly Deputy Speaker Qasim Suri, an ally of the PM, disallowed voting on the motion, saying it was motivated by a “foreign conspiracy” and hence “unconstitutional.” The president then dissolved parliament on Khan’s advice.
In a closely watched verdict, the Supreme Court on Thursday declared the deputy speaker’s ruling void and reinstated parliament, ordering the no-trust vote be held in parliament on Saturday, today.
After several adjournments on Saturday, parliament finally began voting on the no-trust motion against the PM in a session broadcast live on Pakistani state TV.
Ahead of the last session of parliament where the no-trust motion was to be voted on, PM Khan had lost majority in the National Assembly after defections by dozens of his party’s lawmakers and abandonment by his coalition partners. He is widely expected to lose today’s vote.
The opposition blames the PM for mismanaging the economy as well as foreign policy failures and poor governance.
Opposition parties require 172 votes in the 342-member National Assembly for the no-trust motion to prevail.