All eyes are on the Supreme Court, which will hear arguments over whether Imran Khan has the legal right to dissolve parliament and call early elections.
- Pakistan’s highest court is back in action listen to debate on whether Prime Minister Imran Khan and his allies have the legal right to dissolve parliament and call early elections.
- On Sunday, Khan’s ally and deputy speaker of parliament, Qasim Suri, Dissolve the National Assembly to pass a vote of no confidence that Khan seemed certain to lose.
- The opposition argues that the deputy speaker has no constitutional authority to cast a vote of no confidence and argues this is a plot by Khan to stay in power.
- The stalemate has plunged the country of 220 million people, which the military has long ruled since independence in 1947, into a full-blown constitutional crisis.
Here are the latest updates:
How could the political crisis in Pakistan play out?
Legal experts say how the Supreme Court ruled on Khan’s actions could have main meaning for democracy in Pakistan, where no prime minister has expired and the military has ruled almost half of the country’s history.
Let’s look at things possible situations as the country’s top court considers the legality of Khan’s moves.
Former PM: Pakistan could ‘fall into anarchy’
Former Pakistani Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has told Al Jazeera that the country’s constitution has been “flagrantly violated” by Khan’s government.
“If the decisions of the Supreme Court are also violated, the country will fall into anarchy,” said the leader of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).
“We expect the Supreme Court to uphold the Constitution and set the path for the future of the political system according to the provisions of the Constitution and the aspirations of the Pakistani people.”
Can’t vote for three months: Poll
According to a report in Dawn, the Election Commission of Pakistan has expressed that it cannot hold a general election within three months, saying there are legal obstacles and procedural challenges.
A senior official with the polling panel told the English-language newspaper that preparations for the general election would require about six months.
Khan’s move to ‘subvert the constitution’: Analyst
Ahmad Bilal Mehboob of the Pakistan Institute for Legislative Transparency and Development (PILDAT) told Al Jazeera that the deputy speaker’s ruling on the vote of no confidence was not only unconstitutional but an act of subversion.
“Since everything seems to be pre-planned, in violation of the constitution [by the government] are attempts to subvert the constitution,” he said.
“The speaker can only hold a vote and the members have the right to accept or reject the motion of no confidence.”
