Political Turmoil 2.0: PA speaker disposes Governor’s order over CM Elahi’s vote of trust
Punjab Assembly (PA) Speaker Sibtain Khan disposed off Governor Balighur Rehman’s order requiring Chief Minister Parvez Elahi to take a vote of confidence from the house and adjourned the session till December 23 (Friday).
He said that the Governor’s orders were “against the Constitution and Rules of Procedure”.
In a two-page decision, the Speaker Punjab Assembly clarified that the Governor’s orders were not in accordance with Article 54(3) and Article 127.
“The house is in session since Oct 23, 2022, and under Article 54(3) and 127. No fresh session can be convened unless and until the current one ends,” the order read.
Referring to the case of Mian Manzoor Ahmad Watto vs Federation of Pakistan, Sabatin Khan said that the Punjab Chief Minister has to be given 10 clear days to win the vote of confidence.
He added this “time span was mandatory”, which is missing in the governor’s order.
Later, the Speaker Punjab Assembly convened a session of the House on December 23 afternoon, which rendered the no-confidence motion and the orders of the Governor Punjab practically ineffective.
On Saturday, PTI Chairman Imran Khan announced to dissolve the Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) assemblies on December 23 (Friday).
Following the Khan’s announcement, Punjab Governor Balighur Rehman had asked the chief minister to take a vote of confidence from the House on Wednesday (today), while PML-N and PPP lawmakers submitted a separate no-trust motion against him in a bid to bar him from dissolving the assembly.
