Key coalition partner PML-Q to support PM in no-trust vote as motion tabled
Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q), the key coalition partner of the ruling government, has announced to support Prime Minister Imran Khan in the upcoming no-confidence vote in the National Assembly.
Following the statement, the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) announced PML-Q leader Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi as its candidate for Punjab chief minister after incumbent Usman Buzdar presented resigned on Monday. Chaudhry Parvez Elahi currently served as the speaker of Punjab Assembly.
State minister for information Farrukh Habib confirmed that Prime Minister Imran Khan had nominated Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi.
On Monday, the opposition parties tabled a no-confidence motion against Khan in the National Assembly, seeking his ouster from office.
PML-Q’s support would be crucial for Imran Khan in the no-confidence vote. Khan’s four coalition parties have a total of 20 seats in the lower house of parliament. Khan’s party has 155 seats in the lower house and need the support of allies to complete 172 votes needed to retain power.
In a surprising turn of events, Balochistan Awami Party (BAP) — another key government ally — announced it had reached the conclusion to join the opposition after consultations. The announcement was made by BAP’s parliamentary leader Nawabzada Mir Khalid Khan Magsi in a press conference alongside opposition leaders Shehbaz Sharif, Maulana Fazlur Rehman and Asif Ali Zardari in Islamabad.