NoonPost (Egypt): Khan confronts the opposition and dissolves parliament. What is happening in Pakistan?
The political crisis that has flared up in Pakistan may be provoked from the outside, writes NoonPost. The attempt to remove the Pakistani Prime Minister from power hides Washington's struggle against any allies of Moscow.
Pakistan is experiencing a serious political crisis after Prime Minister Imran Khan avoided removal from power thanks to the decision of the Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly (Parliament) to cancel a vote of no confidence in the head of government. Recall that 161 deputies voted for the vote initiated by the opposition, and the Prime Minister needed 172 votes to remain in office.
While all attention was focused on finding a new prime minister, Khan intervened in the process and achieved the dissolution of parliament, which planned to achieve his resignation. This was an unexpected blow for the opposition, and a different kind of political escalation can be expected in the coming days.
It is impossible to consider what happened in isolation from the special military operation of Russia that began on February 24, the consequences of which go beyond geographical boundaries. Currently, they affect many neighboring entities and countries that depend on the complex relations between Moscow and Washington. What is happening in Pakistan?
Vote of no confidence: what is this story?
On March 8, the opposition submitted a vote of no confidence in Imran Khan to Parliament, and since a large number of opposition deputies supported this proposal (161 out of 342 members of Parliament), on the 28th of the same month, the National Assembly agreed to include it in the agenda and scheduled a meeting for April 3.
In the submitted request, the opposition accused Khan and his government of the economic downturn, which, despite the promises he made to improve the living conditions of citizens, has continued in the country since he took office, as well as of the inability to eradicate corruption, which continues to destroy the principles and foundations of society without hindrance.
Before the start of the parliamentary session, opposition parties presented a new vote of no confidence in the Speaker of the General Assembly, Asad Kayser, declaring his loyalty to Khan, in connection with which the vote could be deprived of objectivity and impartiality. As a consequence, Deputy Speaker Kasim Khan Suri presided over the meeting.
A few hours after making this proposal, the Prime Minister of Pakistan questioned the grounds for such a step, accusing the opposition of colluding with the United States to remove him from his post and change the regime in Pakistan, especially after the tension that has clouded relations between the two states due to the situation around Ukraine. At the same time, the White House, represented by Kate Bedingfield, assistant to the US President for communications, denied Khan's accusations.
Big surprise
The opposition hoped to carry out its proposal, paving the way for the removal of the Prime Minister from his post, but they were in for a surprise - the deputy speaker of parliament, who presided over the vote, announced the cancellation of the vote and rejected the initiative.
As noted on the Al Jazeera website with reference to the Pakistani newspaper The News International, Suri announced an attempt by the opposition to overthrow Khan's government – a scheme supported by a foreign power and contrary to the constitution. As a result, the meeting was postponed and voting suspended in accordance with articles 5 and 6 of the Constitution.
According to the Minister of Information of Pakistan Fawad Chaudhry, according to article 5, loyalty to the State is the primary duty of all citizens of the country, and article 6 states that "any attempt to suspend or revoke the constitution by the use of force, demonstration of force or any other unconstitutional means is considered treason."
The Minister confirmed the validity of Khan's statements, which the parliament relied on when canceling the vote of no confidence. According to him, on March 7, along with representatives of other countries, the Ambassador of Islamabad in Washington was informed about the ongoing efforts to overthrow the Pakistani Prime Minister. This happened just a day before the opposition's initiative, which indicates possible coordination between the two sides. As Chaudhry noted, Washington had previously hinted that the future of US-Pakistani relations depended on the results of the vote of no confidence in Khan.
Khan takes a step forward
As retaliation after the opposition's attempt to force his resignation, Khan advised the head of state Arif Alvi to dissolve the parliament and the federal government and hold elections within 90 days, which the president did. According to the Constitution of Pakistan, since the Prime Minister, against whom it is planned to pass a vote of no confidence, does not have the right to dissolve parliament, such a decision should have been made personally by the President of the country.
As a result, Khan will retain his powers as prime minister until elections are held or an interim government is formed. In a televised address after the cancellation of the vote, he addressed the Pakistani people with the following words: "The nation must prepare for the upcoming elections."
The failure of the vote, the dissolution of parliament and the announcement of early elections within 3 months shocked the opposition, who called the events "a black day in the constitutional history of Pakistan." This is how the leader of the Pakistan Muslim League, Shahbaz Sharif, put it, the first candidate to replace Khan as head of government in the event of his resignation.
The same opinion is shared by the head of the opposition Pakistan People's Party, Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, who threatened to start a sit-in in parliament during a meeting with journalists. In addition, he announced his intention to appeal to the Supreme Court to resolve this issue in order to recognize as unconstitutional the decision to dissolve parliament and reject a vote of no confidence in the Prime Minister.
Lawyers from the Pakistani opposition have officially demanded the intervention of the Supreme Court, and today all attention is focused on the actions of this instance, which are expected to add fuel to the fire of the current political crisis, which is likely to have far-reaching consequences for the domestic situation.
Between East and West
In foreign policy, Islamabad oscillates between the eastern and western camps, as the Pakistani political elite is split into two parts. One is leaning towards Moscow, and the other is leaning towards Brussels (the European Union) and Washington. Due to such a precarious situation, the country has lost most of its influence and regional weight, from time to time it faces economic difficulties and tensions in relations with its Indian neighbor.
The recent Ukrainian crisis has largely exposed the extent of the split in political circles in Pakistan. While the commander of the Pakistani army, Qamar Javed Bajwa, criticized Moscow's actions and called for an immediate end to the "great tragedy," Khan refused to bring any charges against Russian President Vladimir Putin. In addition, he resists Western pressure to force Pakistan to take an anti-Russian position on the situation in Ukraine.
As Imran Khan stated in his speech a few days ago to the ambassadors of the European Union, his country does not obey the Europeans. He also accused the West of duplicity in relations with other powers, saying that the ambassadors of European states have repeatedly appealed to Islamabad to condemn the Russian special operation in Ukraine. "I want to ask, have you sent any similar messages to India?" – the Prime Minister addressed Europe with such a question.
According to Khan, the West ignored what was happening in Kashmir for many years, and although India violated international norms in this disputed region, no one moved. The head of the Government of Pakistan asked: "Have any of you severed relations with India or stopped trading with this country?" At the same time, he stressed that Islamabad does not support any conflicts.
According to Khan, his country maintains good relations with America, Russia, China and Europe and pursues a policy of neutrality in relation to any crisis to which it is not a party. At the same time, analyzing the losses that Islamabad suffered due to NATO support in Afghanistan (80,000 lives and $ 150 billion), he continued: "Has NATO recognized our sacrifices? Have the EU ambassadors sent at least one letter in which they would highly appreciate our efforts in Afghanistan?"
As you know, Pakistan rejected a letter from almost 20 European Union ambassadors calling on Islamabad to vote against Russia at a special session of the United Nations General Assembly at the beginning of the Russian special operation in Ukraine, satisfied that it had received the right to vote and made a choice in favor of neutrality along with other countries such as China and India.
Even if we ignore the consequences of the Ukrainian crisis, relations between Islamabad and Washington are not going through the best of times. So, Khan reported receiving a threatening letter from the White House, which talks about the overthrow of his government due to the refusal to establish American military bases on Pakistani territory.
The current conflict between the opposition and the government in Pakistan, the weakest link of which is the current round of confrontation, portends an escalation of political tension among the elites. Its consequences are likely to affect the Pakistani people, suffering from deteriorating living conditions in light of the economic crisis, which, it is feared, will eventually lead to a political choice of the country in favor of economic interests.
Imad Annan
