HOW OPPN PLOTTED IMRAN KHAN’S DOWNFALL

Imran Khan was voted out of power early on Sunday. It took the opposition months of planning to move the no-trust motion against the country’s PM

2021

As per a Geo TV report, by the end of 2021 - Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) started pushing Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif to move a no-trust motion against Khan’s government

Dec 24:

PML-N leader Ayaz Sadiq hinted the opposition was preparing for such a move

2022

Jan 18: PPP chairman

Bilawal Bhutto

Zardari said a no-confidence motion against the Senate chairman would not oust the government and the opposition wants to send the PM home Feb 7: PML-N and PPP officially discuss

a no-trust motion against PM

Feb 8: Shehbaz Sharif proposes the option of a no-confidence motion against Imran Khan to MQM-P. Its leader Amir Khan agrees to take up the matter with the party’s coordination committee

Feb 11: Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, on behalf of the opposition, announces to bring a no-confidence motion against PM, as per Geo TV

March 8: Opposition finally moves a no-confidence motion

March 12: Nawaz Sharif and disgruntled PTI leader Aleem Khan discuss the no-trust motion in London

March 27: Imran Khan claims that the opposition’s no-confidence motion is part of a “foreign-funded conspiracy” hatched to oust him

March 28: Leader of the opposition Shehbaz Sharif tables a no-confidence resolution against PM

March 31: National Assembly (NA) session for the no-confidence motion against PM adjourned till April 3

April 3: NA deputy speaker Qasim Suri dismisses the no-confidence motion, terms it “unconstitutional” and wraps up proceedings. President Arif Alvi dissolves the assembly on PM’s advice and the Supreme Court takes suo motu notice of political situation

April 7: The Supreme Court restores the NA, declares the govt’s decision to dissolve the assembly and

Qasim Suri’s ruling illegal. It orders NA speaker Asad Qaiser to call an assembly session on Saturday [April 9]

April 8: A day before the house was set to vote on the no-confidence motion, Khan said he will not tolerate the installation of a “foreign government” April 9-10: PTI’s elected speaker Asad Qaiser summoned the session for the vote on the no-confidence motion at 10:30am local time. Imran Khan-led PTI kept delaying the vote throughout the session. However, minutes before the clock struck 12am, Qaiser resigned and handed over his seat to Ayaz Sadiq to chair the session on the no-trust motion After Sadiq took over the speaker’s seat, 174 members of the opposition voted in favour of the motion leading to Imran Khan’s removal from the PM’s office