ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s parliament will today begin a debate on a no-confidence motion that was launched by opposition lawmakers on Monday in a bid to remove Prime Minister Imran Khan from office.
While a vote on the motion is to be held within seven days of its tabling, Khan has already lost his majority in parliament after a key government ally said on Wednesday they had struck a deal with the opposition and subsequently quit Khan’s ruling coalition. Another coalition partner, Balochistan’s BAP, has also abandoned Khan.
“The prime minister ceases to hold his office after he has lost the confidence of this house,” opposition leader Shehbaz Sharif told reporters on Wednesday.
The no-confidence move comes as Pakistan faces an enduring economic crisis, with the opposition claiming that Khan has mismanaged the economy and governed poorly.
Nearly 20 defections in Khan’s ruling party combined with the loss of coalition partners have made Khan short of the 172 votes, a simple majority, needed to hold on to power.
Opposition parties filed the no-confidence motion on March 8. It was presented and tabled before the National Assembly on March 28.
The speaker of the National Assembly has to carry out the vote no sooner than three days and no later than seven days after the motion is tabled. The earliest the vote can happen is today, Thursday. The latest is April 4.