Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has sparked off a constitutional crisis by dissolving the National Assembly and calling for fresh elections to thwart a no-confidence vote that he was expected to lo
Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has sparked off a constitutional crisis by dissolving the National Assembly and calling for fresh elections to thwart a no-confidence vote that he was expected to lose.
Here is a quick rundown on the crisis.Last week, Mr Khan lost his parliamentary majority following the defection of allies from his government and a no-confidence vote, scheduled for Sunday , was set to see him removed from office. Ahead of the vote, the deputy speaker of Parliament declared that the no-confidence motion was"unmaintainable", alleging a United States-led conspiracy against the prime minister. Mr Khan himself said the opposition was colluding with the US and the West for"regime change" because he did not wish to join hands with them against China and Russia. Washington has denied any interference. Subsequently, President Arif Alvi dissolved the National Assembly, which would normally have led to fresh elections held within 90 days. But the opposition cried foul, alleging that the former cricket star's moves were unconstitutional, leading to hearings by the country's top court, which began on Monday.All eyes are now on Pakistan's Supreme Court as it deliberates on the constitutionality of the no-confidence vote being declared unmaintainable and dissolution of Parliament. The court is supposed to be independent, but prior rulings have raised questions about whether it has been used by civilian and military administrations to accomplish their objectives. Incidentally, Mr Khan appears to have lost the favour of Pakistan's powerful military whose backing swept him into power three years ago. The army has staged multiple coups since the country achieved independence, and has ruled it for over three decades. But it has not waded into the current crisis yet. Should Mr Khan be allowed to stay in office, it is likely that his anti-US foreign policy will make it hard to mend ties with the Biden administration. It will also push Pakistan closer into the orbit of Russia and China. In contrast, his opponents have called for improvement in US-Pakistan ties and even the army chief, General Qamar Javed Bajwa, has expressed his hope for better relations with Washington.
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