Another confrontation is on the horizon in Punjab.
PA The speaker denounces as “unconstitutional” the governor’s demand for a vote of confidence from the CM.
Punjab was on the verge of a political stalemate on Tuesday as the federal government insisted that Pervaiz Elahi would “cease to hold” office if he didn’t win a vote of confidence from the provincial assembly by 4 p.m. on Wednesday (today). However, Speaker Sibtain Khan deemed the governor’s order to the chief minister for the vote to be “unconstitutional.”
Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah stated following a significant meeting at the Governor’s Mansion that if Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi did not receive the vote of confidence, the governor might call another assembly session for the election of a new chief minister.
The Punjab chief minister was instructed to seek a vote of confidence on December 21 by Governor Balighur Rehman on Monday (today). The opposition Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) had filed a no-confidence resolution against Elahi in an effort to prevent the dissolution of the provincial parliament on Friday when the governor gave the order.
Instead of adjourning the Punjab Assembly session on Wednesday (today), as the governor had instructed, Speaker Sibtain Khan did so on Tuesday. The governor’s letter requesting the chief minister to seek a vote of confidence, according to the speaker, violated both the assembly norms and the Constitution.
The speaker concluded that the governor’s directive to the chief minister was “unconstitutional” since the assembly was currently in session and the governor was unable to call a new session until the present one was prorogued.
The verdict stated that the Punjab provincial legislature was already in session after being called by the speaker on the assembly’s request on October 23. The governor cannot call a new session “unless and unless the current session is prorogued,” it continued.
Senior PML-N figures, including Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah, attended an important meeting at Governor House after the decision. The speaker’s rejection to consider the governor’s request for a vote of confidence was discussed at the meeting.
The minister told reporters outside the Governor House, “If [the] CM Punjab does not seek a vote of confidence by 4pm Wednesday, he would cease to be the CM.” “The governor can call a session to elect a new CM if [the] CM does not seek vote of confidence by the allotted time,” he continued.
The speaker’s position, according to Rana, is in violation of both the law and the Constitution. He emphasised that, according to the law, the governor could call the assembly to order at any time and direct the chief minister to petition the house for a vote of confidence.
The speaker, however, reaffirmed his position in an interview with The Express Tribune that the governor’s directive to the chief minister was questionable “in the light of the Constitution as well as the assembly norms.” The speaker said, “You will hear excellent news,” when asked what would happen next.
Imran Khan’s declaration last week setting the date of December 23 for the dissolution of the two houses in order to compel the coalition government to conduct early general elections in the nation led to the current development.
A new round of provincial elections and by-elections would be held in nearly two-thirds of all constituencies in the nation as a result of the dissolution of the two provincial assemblies, the resignation of the PTI lawmakers from the Sindh and Balochistan assemblies, as well as the National Assembly, according to Imran.
The majority of the parties in the current coalition, the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), have increased their efforts to thwart such a situation. Two significant parties in the alliance, the PPP and the PML-N, submitted a no-confidence motion against the chief minister on Monday.
Regarding Imran’s declaration on December 23 (Friday) to dissolve the provincial assemblies of Punjab and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Rana Sanaullah stated that “one mad man is hell bent on destroying our system,” including his party and provincial governments.
The minister stated, “In the event that the CM [Elahi] seeks and wins the vote of confidence, then he should swear that he would not dissolve the assembly at the whim of a “crazy man.” “The nation and the institutions agree that he [Imran] must be stopped before he plunges the nation into chaos.”
Elahi’s majority in the parliament is supported primarily by the PTI, which is adamant about obstructing the opposition. According to province minister Raja Basharat, “The PML-N is concealing behind the delay tactics since its lawmakers are well aware that they are not in a position to face the public [during elections].”
The governor’s letter requesting the vote of confidence, according to Basharat, “is equivalent to make mockery of the Constitution,” he insisted. The minister emphasised that the chief minister’s letter from the governor had no legal standing.
Rana Muhammad Iqbal Khan, a prominent PML-N figure and former two-term provincial speaker, said that the governor carried out all of his actions in accordance with the law when he was questioned about the same matter. He acknowledged that there was a chance when asked whether the situation would end up in court.
Atta Tarar, the special adviser to the prime minister for legal matters, stated that the federal government would pursue all legal avenues to challenge the speaker’s decision. “The Speaker’s refusal to consider the Governor’s request for a vote of confidence is wholly unlawful.”
Tarar declared that the speaker’s stance was entirely illegal when it was brought up that he had cited a legal precedent and explained his justifications for rejecting this directive. He continued that technically, “if he does not seek vote of confidence on the day given by the governor,” Elahi would no longer be the legitimate chief minister.
Tarar said that the PDM did not require the numbers since the chief minister would now “had to seek the vote of confidence to prove his majority” if the opposition’s no-confidence motion succeeded in ousting him.
In the meantime, PPP Co-Chairman Asif Zardari paid Chaudary Shujaat Hussain, President of the PML-Quaid, a second visit in three days to discuss the most recent political situation in Punjab. Leaders of the PPP Nasir Hussain Shah and the PML-Q Chaudary Salik Hussain and Tariq Bashir Chema also attended the meeting.
Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan, the head of the PML-N, gave the leaders of the two parties an update on the current political scenario in Punjab, according to a news release released after the meeting. According to the statement, the PDM will soon have its own chief minister in Punjab.
Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan’s attendance at the meeting fueled rumours that he might be the PDM’s choice to succeed Elahi as Punjab chief minister after the latter was ousted by a vote of no-confidence. To a media question, he replied, “I’m fighting for Hamza Shehbaz, not for myself.”
