Pakistan political crisis: Supporters of Imran Khan are expected to protest his expulsion.
Islamabad:
The candidate for Pakistan’s next prime minister is due to file nomination papers on Sunday after Imran Khan lost a no-confidence vote in parliament, leaving the former cricket star nearly four years in power.
Khan remained adamant for nearly a week when a united opposition first tried to oust him, managing to avert a no-confidence vote, which he said was part of a foreign-backed conspiracy against him, and dissolved Parliament.
But the Supreme Court ordered parliament to try and hold the vote and Khan’s government fell in the early hours of Sunday after a 13-hour session, which saw repeated delays and lengthy speeches by lawmakers from his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party. were involved.
The vote went ahead after powerful army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa met Khan, said two sources, who declined to be identified, because of criticism over the delay in the parliamentary process.
The military has ruled the nuclear-armed country of 220 million people for almost half of its nearly 75-year history.
The opposition parties managed to secure 174 votes in the 342-member house for the no-confidence motion, giving them the majority they needed.
Parliament will meet on Monday to elect a new prime minister. Nomination papers must be filed by 11:00 am (0600 GMT) on Sunday.
Khan has not publicly commented on his expulsion but has called for a protest ahead of the vote.
“I am going to fight,” he said in an address to the nation on Friday.
“I say to all my supporters across Pakistan, on Sunday, after Isha (evening) prayers, you all have to come out of your homes and protest peacefully against this imported government which is trying to come to power. has been.”
new Dawn
Shahbaz Sharif, the front runner in the race to become the next prime minister of Pakistan, said Khan’s passing marks a new beginning.
“A new dawn has begun… This alliance will rebuild Pakistan,” Sharif, 70, told parliament on Sunday.
Sharif, the younger brother of three-time Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, was the chief minister of Punjab province for years and has a reputation as an effective administrator.
His first task would be to repair relations with the mighty military as well as the major ally, the United States, and turn to a faltering economy.
The military viewed Khan and his conservative agenda favorably when he won the election in 2018, but that support has waned due to the appointment of an influential military intelligence chief and economic troubles, which this week led to the biggest interest rate hike in decades.
Khan had opposed the United States throughout his tenure, hailed the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan last year and recently accused the United States of being behind the effort to deport him. Washington denied the allegations.