Islamabad, Mar. 8, (dpa/GNA) – An alliance of Pakistani opposition parties has started the process of ousting Prime Minister Imran Khan through a parliamentary vote.
“We have submitted a no-trust motion against Prime Minister Imran Khan in the National Assembly secretariat,” said Marriyum Aurganzeb, a spokesperson for the party of former premier Nawaz Sharif, on Tuesday.
“We will follow the constitution,” Asad Qaiser, the speaker of the national assembly, told reporters.
The speaker, according to the rules, has to convene a session of the house within 14 days. Once a no-trust motion is tabled in the house, voting takes place within seven days.
“The process will take around 24 days to complete,” Ahmed Bilal Mehboob, president at the Pakistan Institute of Legislative Development and Transparency (PILDAT), told dpa.
Khan will have to step down if 172 members of the 342-member house vote against him.
Khan, whose five-year term ends in August 2023, came to power in national elections tainted by allegations that the country’s powerful military supported him.
The opposition alleges that Khan was “selected” by the generals, who have ruled the country for almost half of its existence, periodically breaking democratic runs.
The ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) denies the allegations and is confident of defeating the opposition.
“Khan will complete his term,” Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed told reporters.
GNA