Pakistan has a legacy of no prime minister completing their full term. True to it, after a day of twists and turns, Imran Khan was voted out as PM in an after-midnight trust vote. Indeed, Mr. Khan is the only Prime Minister to be removed through a no-confidence motion in the history of Pakistan.
With the strength of 174 lawmakers, the opposition succeeded in passing the no-confidence motion against Imran Khan. Now, the National assembly will meet again on April 11 at 2 pm, where Shehbaz Sharif, the united opposition’s joint candidate and leader of the Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N), is likely to be elected as the new Prime Minister of Pakistan.
The plot grew thicker after the Supreme Court got itself involved in the national high-stakes politics. Finally, the top court reconstituted the assembly terming the deputy speaker’s decision to cancel the trust vote and dissolution of the Parliament by the President as illegal. The SC then asked the acting speaker to call for a National assembly session yesterday at 10 am.
Imran Khan attempted to escape the trust vote with multiple strategies, including calling for a late evening cabinet meeting and tabling conditions for the trust vote. It is also speculated that Mr. Khan was very close to replacing the Army general. If he had done that, there could have been an army-backed coup.
Apparently, there appears to be a sharp divide between Imran Khan and the Army. After the opposition brought in a no-confidence in the national assembly, Imran Khan alleged a foreign conspiracy to oust him, a not-so-subtle tirade directed at the US administration.
He even praised India’s independent foreign policy regarding Russia and Ukraine and how it didn’t buckle to the pressure of the US and its allies. However, the Army chief hailed the country’s relationship with the United States, highlighting that the views of Mr.Khan are not in consonance with the nation’s all-powerful military.
Nonetheless, Imran Khan, the erstwhile cricketer and now the former PM of Pakistan proved himself a tough wicket for the opposition.
Image Source: AP