Pakistan President Dr Arif Alvi on Sunday dissolved the National Assembly on Prime Minister Imran Khan's advice under Article 58 of the Pakistani Constitution.
"The president of Pakistan, Dr Arif Alvi, has approved the advice of the prime minister of Pakistan to dissolve the National Assembly under the Article 58 (1) read with Article 48(1) of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan," President Alvi's Secretariat said in a tweet.
Article 58 of the Pakistani Constitution states that a president can dissolve the National Assembly if advised by the prime minister. "..and the National Assembly shall, unless sooner dissolved, stand dissolved at the expiration of forty-eight hours after the prime minister has so advised," the article states.
No-Confidence Vote Against Imran Khan?
With this, the no-confidence vote against PM Imran Khan, scheduled to be held on Monday, has also been dismissed.
Earlier in the day, Pakistan National Assembly Deputy Speaker Qasim Suri said that the no confidence motion was a contradiction of Article 5 of the Constitution, which says loyalty to the state is the basic duty of every citizen.
Meanwhile, opposition leader and chairman of the Pakistan Peoples' Party (PPP) Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said the opposition front will stage a sit-in at the National Assembly till the no-trust vote against Khan government is held.
Ahead of the National Assembly dissolution, Imran Khan in an address to the nation, called for fresh elections.
The people should decide what they want, not foreigners. Buying people through money has resulted in this. Put that money in something better. I implore the nation to prepare for elections. You will decide the future of this nation, not the corrupt or the foreigners
Imran Khan - Prime Minister, Pakistan
Khan once again reiterated that the no confidence motion against him was a foreign conspiracy and congratulated people on its dismissal.
In another speech on Thursday, Khan had blamed the United States for trying to interfere in Pakistan's politics. He claimed that a letter had been sent to Pakistan by a 'foreign country' to topple the government or 'face consequences''. The allegations were rubbished by the US.
"Well, we are closely following developments in Pakistan, and we respect, we support Pakistan's constitutional process and the rule of law. But when it comes to those allegations, there is no truth to them", said Ned Price, the spokesperson of the US Department of State in a press briefing.
The confidence vote against Khan was postponed from March 31 to April 3. The opposition had brought in this vote against Khan's government alleging foreign policy bungles and economic mismanagement. Interestingly, no prime minister in Pakistan has been able to complete his/her term ever since the country was created in 1947.