According to reports, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan is expected to petition the Supreme Court for a judgment on whether defectors from his party might lose their votes ahead of a no-confidence motion against him. This measure is expected since a vote on a no-confidence motion against the Imran Khan government is scheduled to take place this month. According to reports, the Speaker of the National Assembly will convene the session on March 22.
On March 8, approximately 100 lawmakers from the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) filed a no-confidence motion with the National Assembly. After which around 24 members from Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan’s ruling party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) publicly warned to vote against him on the Opposition’s no-confidence resolution submitted in Parliament.
Chaudhry Fawad Hussain, Pakistan’s Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting, tweeted about submitting the petition before the Supreme Court after a meeting with Imran Khan. He wrote, “The government has decided that a reference under Article 186 will be filed in the Supreme Court for the interpretation of Article 63-A. What is the legal status of their vote?”
کیا ایسے ممبران جو اپنی وفاداریاں معاشی مفادات کے بوجوہ تبدیل کریں ان کی نااہلیت زندگی بھر ہو گی یا انھیں دوبارہ انتخاب لڑنے کی اجازت ہو گی؟ سپریم کورٹ سے درخواست کی جائیگی کے اس ریفرینس کو روزانہ کی بنیاد پر سن کر فیصلہ سنایا جائے۔
— Ch Fawad Hussain (@fawadchaudhry) March 18, 2022
“Will members who change their allegiances for economic gain be disqualified for life or will they be allowed to run for re-election? The Supreme Court will be asked to hear this reference on a daily basis and decide,” he added.
The Imran Khan government is receiving widespread criticism across political lines for mismanaging the economy, foreign policy, and governance.
The dissident PTI MPs had retreated into Sindh House to escape the government’s displeasure for speaking out against Prime Minister Imran Khan earlier this week, where they were attacked by PTI workers. To gain access to the Sindh House, PTI workers scaled the wall and smashed the entry gates.
