Pakistan in turmoil, opposition names Shehbaz Sharif as prime minister

While former PM Imran Khan may think that he has bowled a political googly by dissolving house and calling for elections, this is exactly the thing that exiled (PML-N) founder Nawaz Sharif wanted in the first place.

Pakistan descended into political turmoil after President Arif Alvi dissolved the National Assembly after the no-confidence motion against Imran Khan was dismissed in the house.

Pakistan's opposition leader Shehbaz Sharif.(AFP)

The opposition resumed the session of assembly and not only declared deputy speaker's order rejecting the no-confidence motion as invalid, but also declared Shehbaz Sharif as the new prime minister.

Shehbaz Sharif, the brother of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, also addressed the assembly as the new prime minister.

Pakistan People's Party leader Sherry Rehman tweeted a video wherein she claimed 197 members had elected PML-N MP Ayaz Sadiq as the new speaker.

After Sadiq occupied the speaker's chair, he re-activated the voting on no-confidence motion against the Imran Khan government, which was voted in favour of the motion as the members of the ruling alliance had already left the House.

While former PM Imran Khan may think that he has bowled a political googly by dissolving house and calling for elections, this is exactly the thing that exiled (PML-N) founder Nawaz Sharif wanted in the first place.

This is a protest move as the house was reconvened after the assembly was adjourned till April 25. According to the rules, only the President and Speaker can call the assembly once its prorogued.

Earlier in the day, deputy speaker Qasim Suri while chairing the session dismissed the no-confidence motion against Imran Khan, terming it a contradiction of the Article 5 of the constitution which said that loyalty to the state is every citizen's basic right.

The Pakistan Army, which calls the shots in the country's politics, denied involvement in the events that unfolded in the national assembly. "Army has nothing to do with the political process," Major General Babar Iftikhar, the head of the military's public relations wing, told Reuters.

Opposition leaders including Shehbaz Sharif and Bilawal Bhutto Zardari termed the move unconstitutional and had also declared to move the Supreme Court against the Speaker's decision. With the assembly already dissolved, elections are to take place within three months.

The President will appoint a caretaker prime minister according to Article 224 of the Constitution of Pakistan.