Pakistan Political Crisis

April 11, 2022

On 10^th April 2022, Imran Khan’s term as Pakistan’s Prime Minister ended after days of constitutional chaos in Pakistan that left him with no choice but to be voted out of the office or to resign.

Overview:

The lower house of the Pakistani parliament will be meeting on 11^th April 2022 to vote for a new acting prime minister of the country.
In Pakistan, this is the first time that a no-confidence motion against a prime minister of the country has been successful.
In 2018, Imran Khan was elected as the Prime Minister of the country.
Since Pakistan’s independence in 1947, no prime minister of the country has been able to complete a five-year term in office.

How was Imran Khan voted out?

Imran Khan was voted out after he blocked a similar attempt earlier. The no-confidence motion that was passed in the parliament requires 172 votes out of the 342-seats to be given the green light. The no-confidence motion against Khan was supported by 174 parliamentarians. The motion was passed after Pakistan’s Supreme Court ruled that Khan acted in an unconstitutional manner after blocking the earlier process and dissolving parliament. On 7^th April 2022, the Supreme Court restored the country’s parliament after it was dissolved by President Arif Alvi on the recommendation of Imran Khan. Khan has accused the opposition of conspiring with the US to depose him and has urged his followers to protest against his removal.

The downfall of Imran Khan

Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party had lost the support of its allies. This denied Khan the majority that was needed to defeat the vote of no confidence. Outside the parliament, he also lost the support of the country’s military. The opposition had earlier alleged with the military’s support Khan won the election in 2018. The military had a fallout with Khan over the appointments of senior officials and other policy decisions. Also, the opposition parties the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) increased their efforts to oust Khan as the Prime minister. The allies of Khan also started going against him along with a deepening economic crisis in the country led to his removal.

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