Pakistan: No-confidence motion against PM Imran Khan to be discussed in National Assembly today
In Pakistan, the no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Imran Khan will be discussed in the National Assembly during the Lower House session today which is scheduled to start at 4 p.m. The NA Secretariat last night issued the order of the day for today with discussion on the no-trust move against the premier on the session’s agenda.
Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly and PML-N President Shahbaz Sharif had tabled the no-confidence motion against the Prime Minister on Monday – making him the third premier in Pakistan’s history to face the move. In the meantime, the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) got another major shock when one of its key allies Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) quit the ruling coalition and joined ranks with the Opposition. Imran Khan’s situation is precarious given that three of the four allies – MQM-P, PMLQ, and BAP stated their support for the Opposition’s no-confidence motion and said that they will vote accordingly.
The Opposition parties in Pakistan are seen to have the support of 162 members of the house and are expected to be joined by the three ruling coalition parties during the vote, helping them cross the majority mark. The Pakistani National Assembly has a total strength of 342 members, with the majority mark being 172. The PTI-led coalition was formed with the support of 179 members – Imran Khan’s PTI having 155 members and other major allies including Balochistan Awami Party (BAP) and Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) have some 20 seats.
In another development, Prime Minister Imran Khan has summoned a meeting of the National Security Committee (NSC). In a tweet, Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry today said, the meeting will be held at the Prime Minister’s House in the afternoon. The NSC is the highest forum for coordination on security issues. Meanwhile, the US has rejected any kind of involvement in the no-trust motion against Prime Minister Imran Khan. US State Department said that the allegations of US involvement in the no-trust motion and threat letter to PM Imran Khan are baseless. However, it said, US is monitoring the political situation in Pakistan.
