MQM-P formally joins the opposition, parting ways with ruling PTI
Pakistan’s leading opposition leaders in a joint news conference on Wednesday asked Prime Minister Imran Khan to resign from his position ahead of a no-trust vote in parliament, saying he had lost his majority.
The demand came after a key coalition partner Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) party abandoned the government and formally announced to join the key opposition party Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP).
The MQM-P which has seven lawmakers in the national assembly will significantly reduce the ruling party’s votes in the no-trust vote.
MQM-P’s announcement was made by party convener Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui at a press conference in Islamabad. “We have gathered at a historic moment … I expect that this time we [the opposition parties] can strive for a democracy whose effects can reach the common people of Pakistan,” Siddiqui said.
Earlier, two federal ministers belonging to MQM-P, Barrister Farogh Naseem and Syed Aminul Haq, resigned from their cabinet positions to join the opposition’s ranks.
“The prime minister should tender his resignation after losing majority,” said Shehbaz Sharif, leader of the opposition in the national assembly.
Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari also demanded the prime minister’s resignation, saying Khan had lost the majority in the house.