Islamabad, Pakistan (CU)_ Highlighting the judiciary’s independence, Pakistan Supreme Court’s five-judge panel collectively reversed the National Assembly’s decision to reject the vote of no-confidence against Prime Minister Imran Khan without a vote on Thursday, labeling the move as contrary to the constitution. Additionally, the court reinstated the National Assembly and declared the president’s move to dissolve the house as illegal.
To put an end to weeks of political uncertainty, the court also directed the National Assembly to take a vote on the no-confidence resolution on Saturday. Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial said, “The deputy speaker gave a ruling on April 3. Leave was granted on the no-confidence motion on March 28. The ruling of the speaker is declared unconstitutional”.
The ruling was a severe blow to Prime Minister Khan’s supposed hypothesis of a foreign plot to destabilize his administration, bolstering his opponents’ claims that the government has engaged in unlawful actions. According to the landmark verdict, delivered by a five-member bench led by Pakistan Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial, the prime minister’s recommendation to dissolve the house was unconstitutional and of no legal effect.
Although the supreme court accepted Khan’s attorney Imtiaz Siddiqui’s claim that the judicial review of parliamentary processes was outside the judiciary’s power under Article 69, the Chief Justice stated that what happened in the National Assembly was unprecedented. In response to the court ruling, Bilawal Bhutto, leader of the opposition PPP, took to Twitter and commented, “Democracy is the best revenge”. Mariyam Nawaz Shariff, the PML-N’s vice president, described it as a triumph for the supremacy of the Constitution.
Last Sunday, the National Assembly’s deputy speaker declined the no-confidence vote passed against Prime Minister Khan by the opposition groups, which were supposedly commanding sufficient votes to unseat him, charging them of being untrustworthy to the nation and conspiring with foreign powers. The court characterized the ruling as erroneous. With that, Khan’s intention to run for office within 90 days appears to have come to an end.
