Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan’s gamble of dissolving Parliament has backfired. The Supreme Court of Pakistan ruled on Thursday (April 7) that it was unconstitutional of the National Assembly deputy speaker to disallow a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Imran Khan last weekend.
The court also ordered that Imran Khan will now have to face a no-confidence vote on April 9.
A five-member bench of the apex court, led by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial, delivered the verdict after five consecutive days of hearing out the Opposition, which was ready with the numbers to dethrone Khan.
During arguments on Thursday afternoon the Supreme Court had noted that Deputy Speaker Qasim Suri’s decision to disallow the no-trust vote was, prima facie, a violation of Article 95 of the Constitution.
Chief Justice Bandial had said the court would take into account the country’s “national interest” and “practical possibilities” before deciding on the final verdict.
According to Pakistan’s ARY News, Khan held a meeting with his legal team in the afternoon and told them the PTI would accept any verdict.
