Elahi’s actions lead to dissolution. The Chief Minister of the Punjab Assembly provides the necessary advice to the Governor, so paving the path for new elections.
In order to fulfill a promise to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan, Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Parvez Elahi gave Governor Balighur Rehman the go-ahead to dissolve the provincial legislature on Thursday night. This opened the way for new elections.
Elahi’s son Moonis confirmed the most recent development on Twitter by posting a one-line dissolution statement along with a note confirming its arrival at the governor’s office. “The promise was kept. Imran Khan, may we soon see you in the prime minister’s chair, he wished in a tweet.
According to a letter from the chief minister to the governor that was released on Twitter by Moonis Elahi, “I, Parvez Elahi, Chief Minister Punjab, now advise you to dissolve the provincial legislature of Punjab.”
Another image posted by Moonis shows the governor’s office receiving the advice. On January 12, 2023, at 10:10 p.m., a sealed envelope was noted as having been received. “Governor House received the recommendation for dissolution. No other option than elections” wrote Moonis.
Less than 24 hours after the Punjab Parliament gave the chief minister a vote of confidence in the early hours of Thursday, the recommendation to dissolve the assembly was made.
Imran Khan, the former prime minister, announced the dissolution of the Punjab Assembly and the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa legislature at the conclusion of his anti-government march on November 26. These are the two provinces where the PTI and its key ally, the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q), are in power.
Imran had stated that the PTI members in the Sindh Assembly will also resign in addition to the two assemblies, while they had already left the National Assembly. As a result, about two-thirds of the constituencies would become empty, forcing the government to call general elections rather than by-elections.
The PML-N has increased its attempts to stop the assembly’s dissolution since Imran Khan’s statement. Before Governor Rehman ordered the chief minister to request a new vote of confidence from the assembly last month, the PML-N filed a no-confidence resolution against him.
The speaker, who contested the validity of the governor’s order, declined to convene a new session on the date set aside for the trust vote. The governor then informed the chief minister and his cabinet of this. Later, Elahi appealed the government’s decision to the Lahore High Court, which temporarily reinstated his government.
According to constitutional experts, the summary had to be signed by the governor in order for the assembly to be declared dissolved. The assembly would immediately be dissolved 48 hours after its reception if the governor did not sign the summary. In the current situation, that would be Saturday at 10:10.
The summary, according to the experts, opened the door for new provincial assembly elections to be held within 90 days, or by the end of April. But for now, as soon as Elahi and opposition leader Hamza Shehbaz parted ways, the consultative process to create a caretaker administration would begin.
Earlier, to discuss the current political climate, Chief Minister Hussain Elahi presided over a consultative meeting with Punjab Assembly Speaker Muhammad Sabtain Khan, Provincial Minister Raja Basharat, and MNA Hussain Elahi.
The Punjab governor had “supported our point of view,” the chief minister told the meeting’s attendees, by rescinding the de-notification order. He condemned the “nefarious attempt” by Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah to twist the truth and deceive the populace.
According to the legislation and the Constitution, the vote of confidence process was completed by the assembly, according to Speaker Sibtain Khan. The opposition had been pleading for a vote of confidence for the previous three days, the speaker claimed, and “when we demonstrated our strength, it was talking about a no-trust resolution.”
According to PTI Senior Vice President Fawad Chaudhry, the chief minister met with PTI Chairman Imran Khan before sending the summary to the governor. He emphasised that Elahi had signed the summary of the dissolution, which was being forwarded to Governor Rehman for approval.
Chaudhry added that the K-P Assembly would also be dissolved in the similar way the day after tomorrow. According to the Constitution, elections will be held in 60% of the country in the next 90 days after the dissolution of two provincial assemblies, he insisted.
At the time, Chaudhry claimed that the PTI had once more requested that Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, the speaker of the National Assembly, accept the resignations of “our parliamentarians,” who had submitted them soon after the PTI-led government had been overthrown by a vote of no-confidence in April of the previous year.
“The federal government should stop being so obstinate and start the process of electoral reforms before holding elections throughout the country,” Chaudhry emphasised. “Political stability is a prerequisite for economic stability in the nation.”
In a separate media interview, the PTI Chairman’s attorney, Barrister Ali Zafar, stated that since the Punjab chief minister had been successful in winning the house’s vote of confidence, there were no obstacles to dismissing the assembly at this time.
According to Hammad Azhar, general secretary of PTI Central Punjab, the country’s economic problems cannot be solved under the current conditions unless “the entire coalition administration resigned and fresh elections were held immediately.”
The governor reportedly retracted the de-notification order after accepting the vote of confidence, according to provincial minister Raja Basharat. The proceedings of the Punjab Assembly were deemed constitutional and legal by the Governor’s attorney. To combat his despair and save face, Rana Sanaullah is spreading fake information.
Separately, Usman Buzdar, the party’s parliamentary leader in Punjab, divisional coordinators, and the chief whip were present for a meeting that Imran presided over. The PTI leader praised everyone on the team for their accomplishments in the Punjab Assembly.
The manner our legislators supported the Punjab chief minister despite the offers and threats was admirable, he added. “Our team threw a historic surprise to the imported rulers.” He gave the provincial lawmakers instructions to get ready for the next elections.
