Pakistan SC adjourns hearing on PM Imran Khan’s bid to stay in power

Pakistan’s top court has once again deferred a decision on the legality of Prime Minister Imran Khan’s actions in blocking an attempt to remove him.

Pakistan’s supreme court adjourned Tuesday without ruling on the legality of political manoeuvres that led Prime Minister Imran Khan to dissolve the national assembly and call fresh elections. The court, which will resume Wednesday, must decide if the deputy speaker of the assembly violated the constitution by refusing to allow a no-confidence vote against Khan at the weekend.

A five-judge Supreme Court bench headed by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial heard multiple petitions filed by the opposition parties challenging Khan’s decision to dissolve parliament and call for early elections and asked the petitioners and respondents to complete their arguments on that day.

“We will try to announce a verdict tomorrow,” the chief justice said.

Had the vote taken place Khan was certain to have been booted from office, but the move allowed him to get the presidency -- a largely ceremonial role held by a loyalist -- to dissolve parliament and order an election, which must be held within 90 days, AFP reported.

President Arif Alvi upped the ante Tuesday by issuing a letter to the opposition saying if they didn’t nominate a candidate for interim prime minister, the process would continue without them.

Shehbaz Sharif, who would have replaced Khan had Sunday’s vote taken place, said he wouldn’t participate.

“The main issue is that the constitution has been abrogated,” he told reporters outside the court.

“If we don’t get a remedy then Pakistan will, God forbid, become a banana republic.”

Khan has already nominated former chief justice Gulzar Ahmad for the role.

Pakistan has been wracked by political crises for much of its 75-year existence, and no prime minister has ever seen out a full term.

• PM Imran Khan
• Pakistan SC
• adjourns
• bid to stay in power
• hearing
• attempt to remove him