Imran Khan will remain in office till a caretaker prime minister is appointed, Pakistan's president Arif Alvi clarified in a late-night tweet after the country saw its most politically turbulent day this year and braced for yet another leadership crisis. "Mr. Imran Ahmad Khan Niazi, shall continue as Prime Minister till the appointment of caretaker Prime Minister under Article 224 A (4) of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan," the president's office said in a tweet.
In a series of rapid developments, Imran Khan on Sunday outsmarted the opposition move to oust him as deputy speaker Qasim Suri, a member of the ruling PTI, rejected a no confidence motion against Khan under Article 5 of the constitution. Khan has now called for fresh elections.
The government called the attempts to "topple the government" a part of the foreign conspiracy even as the opposition leaders accuse Khan of misgovernance and blame him for the economic crisis in the country.
On Monday, the Supreme Court will take up the matter after the opposition raised objections against the dismissal of the no trust vote. The Supreme Court will decide if the no trust vote will be taken up again or fresh polls - which the Imran Khan government has said were likely in three months - will take place.
The country remained on edge on Sunday ahead of the much anticipated no trust vote in parliament with security heightened across the capital city of Islamabad. Imran Khan was not in the assembly when the debate started, about an hour after the session was scheduled to begin. Within minutes, chaos unfolded as the motion was rejected, the assembly session was dismissed and Imran Khan gave a suprise address to the nation, calling for fresh polls.
{{/usCountry}}The country remained on edge on Sunday ahead of the much anticipated no trust vote in parliament with security heightened across the capital city of Islamabad. Imran Khan was not in the assembly when the debate started, about an hour after the session was scheduled to begin. Within minutes, chaos unfolded as the motion was rejected, the assembly session was dismissed and Imran Khan gave a suprise address to the nation, calling for fresh polls.
{{/usCountry}}Later, the National Assembly was also dissolved. "The President of Pakistan, Dr. Arif Alvi, has approved the advice of the Prime Minister of Pakistan to dissolve the National Assembly under the Article 58 (1) read with Article 48 (1) of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. (sic)"," the president's office tweeted.