Home Latest News Imran Khan Ousted as P.M. of Pakistan in No-Confidence Vote

Imran Khan Ousted as P.M. of Pakistan in No-Confidence Vote

by Jahanzeb Aslam

File photo. Aamir Qureshi—AFP

PTI chairman becomes first prime minister to be voted out of office through a no-trust motion

After nearly a week of political uncertainty provoked by then-National Assembly Deputy Speaker Qasim Suri dismissing the opposition’s vote of no-confidence and causing a constitutional crisis, the Lower House of Parliament convened on Saturday, ostensibly to vote on the no-confidence motion, even though it was clear from the outset that the government wished to prolong Imran Khan’s premiership for as many more hours as it could manage.

Despite all the delaying tactics utilized by the former government, PTI Chairman Khan was eventually voted out of office with 174 MNAs voting in favor of the no-confidence motion against the 172 required in the 371-member House. There was only one treasury member—Ali Muhammad Khan—present in the Lower House, as the rest walked out as soon as it became clear that the resolution was moving toward a vote.

Addressing Parliament after the vote was formally announced by Sadiq, former Leader of the Opposition Shahbaz Sharif congratulated all the MNAs who voted and said their efforts were rarely matched in Pakistan’s history. Specifically crediting his fellow leaders of the former opposition, he said this would lay the foundation for a better Pakistan. He promised not to victimize anyone, but said rule of law would be ensured. “We will make this Quaid-e-Azam’s Pakistan,” he added.

In his congratulatory speech, Bhutto-Zardari said history had been made with the successful passage of the no-trust motion—the first in the country’s history. “On April 10, 1973, this House had approved the Constitution of Pakistan; on April 10, 1986, Benazir Bhutto had ended her exile and returned to Pakistan; today it is April 10, 2022, and we have ousted the ‘selected.’ Welcome back to Purana Pakistan,” he added.

Historic session

Initially chaired by then-Speaker Asad Qaiser, the National Assembly session convened at 10:30 a.m. in accordance with the Supreme Court’s ruling to ensure the vote of no-confidence was taken up today. The session commenced with then-Leader of the Opposition Shahbaz Sharif raising a point of order in which he praised the apex court’s ruling and urged the speaker to immediately proceed to a vote.

“The Supreme Court buried the doctrine of necessity [in its ruling],” he said. “The entire nation is thankful for the court’s ruling. I wish to remind you, Mr. Speaker, that you are bound to proceed with this session in accordance with the court’s ruling,” he said. “Today, this Parliament will make history by ousting a ‘selected’ prime minister through democratic means,” he said, adding that the apex court’s ruling was “clear” and the speaker was bound to act in accordance with it and proceed to a vote on the no-confidence motion.

“I have read the entire Supreme Court judgment,” Qaiser responded. “I will conduct today’s business in accordance with the ruling. However, we also wish to debate the matter of an “international conspiracy” that has emerged,” he said to jeers by the opposition. “If you do so, you will be in violation of the SC ruling,” Sharif stressed.

“If you’re speaking of an international conspiracy, this country has not forgotten that they [PTI] had damaged Pakistan’s foreign policy in 2014 by preventing Chinese President Xi Jinping from visiting Pakistan, causing significant damage to the nation,” he said. “We are all Pakistanis,” he said, as he read out relevant parts of the SC ruling that directed the speaker to proceed to vote on no-confidence, noting that the NA could only take up vote of no-trust today and no other matter. “Please, please go for voting on the [no-confidence] resolution,” he added.

“We will adhere to court decision in true spirit,” Qaiser said, mere minutes before he adjourned proceedings for nearly an hour-and-a-half without any valid reason.

Prior to the adjournment, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi commenced his address by saying he was representing Prime Minister Imran Khan—who was not in attendance. “I admit the no-confidence motion is in accordance with the Constitution,” he said, adding that the government would contest this through legal means. “I want to bring on record that there are no illegal means under consideration [to combat the no-trust motion],” he said, and continued to reiterate the PTI’s talking points of the past week that an “international conspiracy” was behind the no-confidence motion and this matter should not be ignored.

The session resumed after a gap of over 2 hours with Qureshi once again taking the floor. Saying this was his “last day” as foreign minister, he reiterated the PTI-led government’s foreign policy accomplishments during its tenure and sought to once again portray the issue of the diplomatic cable as an attack on Pakistan’s sovereignty.

After Qureshi concluded his speech, Pakistan Peoples Party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari took the floor and urged Amjad Khan Niazi, who temporarily chaired the session in Qaiser’s stead, to call for the vote of no-confidence, warning that not doing so would be in contempt of court and be unconstitutional. Accusing Imran Khan of running away from the vote, he said the prime minister’s actions were already in contempt of court, and he wished to drag others down with him. “He was selected before, and he wants to be selected again,” he said, adding that Khan feared “free and fair elections” and the party would find out its true popularity during polling.

There is no “foreign conspiracy,” the PPP leader said. “The real conspiracy is that Imran Khan is afraid of elections! He is conspiring to not let the vote happen and will make the speaker a sacrificial lamb just so he can keep his seat for one more day,” he said. “There were many ways to oust this prime minister,” he said, adding that we, too, know how to appeal to “Gate No. 4”—a reference to the security establishment. “But our struggle was to not just oust him, but oust him through democratic and legal means,” he added.

Responding to the PTI’s allegation of horse-trading by opposition parties, he said the accusers had been the ones involved in horse-trading during last year’s Senate elections. “Twenty of our lawmakers ‘disappeared,’” he said, adding that now that no one was available to ensure the “disappearances,” Khan was set to lose the vote of no-confidence.

“If the vote doesn’t happen today, it would be unconstitutional,” he stressed. “It would also be in contempt of court,” he said, adding that the opposition was in no rush. “We had been discussing the no-confidence motion since 2020,” he added. “Imran Khan should have shown some sportsman spirit ahead of his exit: this is the first captain to flee the pitch in fear of losing the match,” he added.

The PPP chairman was followed by PMLN’s Khawaja Saad Rafique, who alleged that the PTI had committed to holding the vote of no-confidence the previous night but had recanted on its promises at the behest of the prime minister. The next to the rostrum was Planning Minister Asad Umar, who reiterated the PTI’s talking points of a “foreign conspiracy” without providing any evidence to support his claims. The final speaker before the session was adjourned once more was Human Rights Minister Shireen Mazari who accused the Supreme Court of imposing a “judicial coup” through its declaration of the deputy speaker’s actions of April 3 as “unconstitutional.” She also hinted at civil unrest if the vote of no-confidence succeeded, and appeared to deride the Army chief by referencing his recent emphasis on there being a “deep-seated relationship” between Pakistan and the U.S.

The session subsequently was postponed for asr prayers, then iftari, and then unspecified reasons until 9:30 p.m. The session, however, did not resume at that time, with the Lower House finally reconvening at 11:40 p.m. Immediately after taking the chair, Speaker Asad Qaiser said he had received the diplomatic cable—declassified by the federal cabinet earlier in the night—and it raised “significant” questions about the no-confidence motion. Announcing his resignation, he said he had spent a “long period of my life” with Imran Khan and could not proceed against his directives, adding that the PMLN’s Ayaz Sadiq, from the Panel of Chairmen, would preside over the session to vote on the no-confidence motion.

Sadiq, convening the session, praised Qaiser’s tenure as speaker. He then proceeded directly to the no-confidence vote and directed staff to ring the bells for five minutes to ensure all MNAs were present in the Lower House for the vote. He then proceeded to the vote, while announcing that the session would be adjourned for two minutes at midnight to mark the beginning of a new day. After the adjournment, the NA session resumed at 12:02 a.m. and the counting of the votes commenced. The process concluded at 12:50 a.m.

Separately, prior to the NA session being reconvened, the Supreme Court and the Islamabad High Court were both ordered to open their offices, with sources saying this was to ensure that the apex court’s orders to ensure the vote of no-confidence was completed on Saturday had been adhered to. At the same time, rumors emerged that the prime minister had dismissed Chief of Army Staff Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa—these were speedily dismissed by “senior sources,” including the prime minister himself.

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