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Pakistan opposition leader Shahbaz Sharif, center, speaks at a press conference in Islamabad, Pakistan, April 7, 2022.
Pakistan is set to vote in opposition leader Shehbaz Sharif as the country’s next prime minister Monday, a day after incumbent Imran Khan lost a no-confidence vote, bringing down his nearly four-year-old coalition government.
The 342-member National Assembly, or lower house of parliament, voted on the no-confidence motion against Khan early Sunday, with 174 legislators from a united opposition supporting it, two more than required to force the former cricket star from office.
Sharif led the opposition bid to oust Khan, and later submitted his nomination to the legislature for the prime minister’s election, which the 70-year-old politician is widely expected to win.
Khan is the first prime minister to be ousted by a no-confidence vote in Pakistan, but no democratically elected prime minister has served a full five-year term since the founding of the country in 1947.
The repeatedly delayed no-confidence vote against Khan was held after the country’s Supreme Court ruled last week he had acted unconstitutionally when he previously blocked the no-confidence vote, and subsequently dissolved parliament.
The embattled Pakistani leader had defended his blocking of the vote, alleging that the no-confidence motion was the result of the United States meddling in his country’s politics.
Washington rejected the charges, saying there was “no truth” to them.
Late Sunday, tens of thousands of supporters of Khan’s party took to the streets across major Pakistani cites, including the capital, Islamabad, to renew their support for the deposed leader and protest alleged U.S. meddling in Pakistan’s politics.
Khan had lost his majority in the run-up to the vote after 20 lawmakers from his ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party defected. Main coalition partners also switched sides and joined the opposition, leaving him to fight for his political survival.
Despite its ouster, the PTI remains the largest political force, with around 135 seats in the National Assembly barring the defected lawmakers.
The no-confidence vote ultimately went ahead reportedly after a meeting between Pakistan’s powerful army chief, General Qamar Javed Bajwa, and Khan amid criticism the delay in the parliamentary process was deepening days of political turmoil.
Neither Khan nor the military commented on the reported meeting.
Khan’s critics say he had risen to power with the help of Pakistan’s military but lost its crucial support in recent months after developing differences over key security appointments and foreign policy matters, encouraging the opposition to stage his ouster. (VOA)
