All eyes on no-trust vote after SC ruling
Political turmoil in Pak causes rupee to slide, forces central bank to hike interest rate; now time to see if Khan will face the vote or resign
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Supreme Court overturned Prime Minister Imran Khan’s plan to hold an election, a move that could bring the opposition to power within days.
A panel of five judges on Thursday termed as unconstitutional a parliamentary ruling that cancelled a no-confidence vote against Khan, and reinstated the vote to Saturday. The unanimous ruling said cabinet and parliament still stand.
The political instability risks delaying the release of a loan instalment from the International Monetary Fund. A sliding rupee, surging inflation, and falling foreign-currency reserves forced the central bank to surprise earlier on Thursday with the biggest interest rate increase since 1996.
The court order was handed down under heavy security cover - with riot police and paramilitary troops surrounding the court building - amid concerns that government and opposition party supporters could clash.
“It’s a bold but much welcome move by the Supreme Court, especially for constitutional supremacy,” said Marva Khan, an assistant professor at the law school of the Lahore University of Management Sciences. “Having a unanimous judgment on the matter further strengthens the value of this precedent.”
‘Epoch-making day’
Khan has the option to resign before the no-confidence vote. If that is the case, the president may ask him to continue to hold office until his successor takes on the role, according to the constitution.
Opposition leader Shehbaz Sharif, who is likely to take power if Khan loses the vote as expected, called the Supreme Court’s ruling “an epoch-making day,” in a Twitter post.
Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader Bilawal Zardari Bhutto, who had joined forces with Sharif to oust Khan, tweeted: “Democracy is the best revenge”.
Khan claimed the opposition had colluded with the United States for “regime change” when the deputy speaker - a loyalist refused to allow the no-confidence motion. The US state department has denied any involvement in Pakistan’s internal politics.
Khan’s ally and cabinet member Chaudhry Fawad Hussain also tweeted to call the ruling an “unfortunate decision” that “has further deepened the political crisis in Pakistan”.
In recent months, Khan appeared to have fallen out with the South Asian nation’s powerful army over his handling of foreign policy issues as well as the economy. He clashed with top generals after publicly disagreeing with the army chief over a key promotion, undermining an important relationship that has helped him stay in power.
The country’s next government will have to work out the terms of the IMF’s loan, central bank governor Reza Baqir said.
The extra yield investors demand to hold Pakistan’s sovereign debt, on average, over US. Treasuries widened by 8 basis points on Thursday to 10.73 percentage points, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co data, just above the 10-percentage point threshold for distressed debt.
Reflecting the political strife of the past month, the rupee is trading at a record low against the US dollar. Data on Thursday showed the nation’s foreign currency reserves dropped to $11.3 billion as of April 1, the lowest in about two years and enough to cover a couple months of imports.
India keeps an eye on Pak
Ahead of the Supreme Court ruling, India on Thursday declined to comment on the political turmoil in Pakistan saying it is an “internal matter” of that country but noted that it is keeping an eye on the developments in Islamabad. “It is their internal matter. I do not have any comment to make on this. We are keeping an eye on it but we do not comment on internal matters (of any country),” External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said.
The court’s judgment was broader than expected after the chief justice said earlier this week they would only rule on the legality of the no-confidence motion being blocked.
The decision - which the court said was unanimous - was met with jubilation by opposition supporters in the capital, with packed cars racing through the streets, sounding their horns.
Problems in Punjab
Along with the national crisis, problems have been brewing for Khan in Punjab, and his party is on the verge of losing control of Pakistan’s biggest and most populous province days after it lost its majority in the federal parliament.
Hamza Shahbaz, the designated chief minister of Punjab province was set take oath on Thursday, according to the advocate general of Punjab Azam Nazeer Tarar, Dunya News reported. The leader of the opposition in the Punjab assembly, Hamza was elected as the chief minister in a symbolic assembly session held by the opposition on Wednesday.
Constitutional crisis in Pakistan deepened on Wednesday when Punjab’s provincial assembly was sealed by the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf government hours before the election of the new chief minister, barring the opposition lawmakers to enter the premises and take part in the voting.
After the resignation of Punjab chief minister Usman Buzdar, a close aide of Khan, the Punjab Assembly had convened the assembly session to elect the new leader of the House last Sunday.
But following dismissal of the no-confidence motion against Khan, the Punjab assembly’s deputy speaker had deferred the session for Wednesday to elect the new chief minister.
Instead, the opposition, members from the PML-N, PPP, PTI’s Jahangir Khan Tareen and Abdul Aleem Khan groups attended the session that was held at a local hotel in the provincial capital, reported Geo News.
A resolution was presented during the session to elect Hamza as the new chief minister, which was accepted.