The lower house of parliament will vote on a no-confidence motion against Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan next month.
The country’s interior minister, Sheikh Rashid, said on Tuesday that the debate on the no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Imran Khan would begin on Thursday (March 31).
Following that, a referendum on the resolution will be held on the 3rd of next month.
Already, the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q), which has turned against the ruling party alliance, has expressed its support for Imran. Similarly, other disgruntled coalition parties are expected to vote in favor of the government in parliament.
Opposition parties have stated they will not run in the by-elections on March 8. Parliament convened on March 25 to begin the debate. However, no motion of no confidence was filed that day. The chairman adjourned them till the evening of the 28th.
Accordingly, opposition leader and PML-N leader Shebaz Sharif filed a no-confidence motion in parliament on Monday.
In the 342-member lower house of parliament, Imran Khan needs the support of 172 members to defeat the no-confidence motion. His Tehreek-e-Insaf party has 155 members. The 23 members of the coalition parties have not yet pledged their support. Moreover, it is questionable whether Imran will continue in office as about 20 members of his Tehreek-e-Insaf party have raised the banner against Imran.
Imran orders MPs to boycott polls
Prime Minister Imran Khan has ordered ruling Tehreek-e-Insaf party MPs to boycott a vote of no-confidence against him.
In a letter to party MPs on Tuesday, Imran Khan said, “Party MPs should abstain from voting or participate in parliamentary proceedings on polling day. It should be noted that those who go to the polls in violation of this order are in violation of Article 63 (a) of the Constitution.
While the coalition parties have not confirmed their support for Imran Khan, 20 of the ruling party’s MPs have spoken out against Imran. Therefore, Imran Khan has issued this order with the aim of preventing them from voting in favor of the no-confidence motion.