The drama in Pakistan politics seems to never end with new turns and twists. While the National Assembly is supposed to take up the voting for the no confidence motion today evening, the speaker of the house reportedly refused to conduct the voting.
Around an hour before the anticipated voting, Pakistan National Assembly speaker Asad Qaiser refused to hold the vote on the no-confidence motion against Imran Khan government. Opposition leaders from the national assembly alleged that the speaker said that he can’t hold the voting because he has a 30-year-old relationship with Prime Minister Imran Khan.
He said that he can’t damage his 30-year-old relation with Imran Khan, therefore he will not conduct the voting. He also said that even if a no-confidence motion is brought against him, or the opposition approaches the Supreme Court against him, he will not change his position.
He said that he is ready to suffer whatever punishment was meted out to him, but under no circumstances he would betray Imran Khan.
After the deputy speaker Qasim Suri had dismissed the no-confidence motion last Sunday and prorogued the assembly session, the opposition had move the Supreme Court against the decision. On Thursday, the Supreme Court of Pakistan called the action of the deputy speaker unconstitutional, and had ordered that the voting for the motion must take place by 10.30 on Saturday. The court had also restored the national assembly, which was dissolved by the president on the advice of PM Imran Khan.
Accordingly, the assembly convened today morning, but the session was adjourned multiple times, and the voting didn’t take place. Later it was reported that the voting will take place after 8 PM. But minutes before that, the speaker reportedly refused to conduct the voting.
However, the debate on the motion is still going on, and the status of the voting remains uncertain.
