WORLD NEWS | Pakistani Punjab parliament dissolved; caretaker CM nominations called for Jan 17

Lahore, January 15 (PTI) Pakistan’s Punjab parliament was dissolved on Saturday night after Punjab Governor Balighur Rehman refused to sign Chief Minister Chaudhry Parvez Elahi’s proposal.

Elahi issued a proposal to dissolve parliament on Thursday, based on the “will” of Pakistan’s Justice Movement chief Imran Khan. Disbanded 48 hours (Saturday night) since the CM sent it to the Governor under the Constitution as the Governor did not sign off on the Dissolution Summary.

Read also | Miss Universe 2022 Finals Live Streaming in IST, GMT and EST: How to Watch Pageant Live Streaming in India and Rest of the World? Get the date and time of TV and online TV broadcasts.

“I have decided not to be involved in the process that led to the dissolution of the Punjab Assembly. I would rather let the Constitution and laws run their course. Doing so will not preclude any legal process enshrined in the Constitution which clearly provides a way forward,” the governor said in a tweet.

The Governor also invited CM Elahi and PA Opposition Leader Hamza Shahbaz (son of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif) to start the process of appointing the Caretaker Chief Minister. He gave them until Jan. 17 to submit nominations.

Read also | Russo-Ukrainian war: Russian embassy has warned Britain against sending Challenger tanks to Ukraine, saying it would escalate the conflict.

Elahi, the joint candidate of ousted Prime Minister Imran Khan’s party Pakistan Justice Instigation (PTI) and PML-Q, signed the brief to dissolve the Palestinian Authority hours after he managed to secure a vote of confidence.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa parliament will also be dissolved within days, Imran Khan said. The move is aimed at pushing the PMLN-led federal government to hold early polls. Khan said only fresh polls could lift the country out of the economic crisis.

The federal government insists on holding a general election after the government term ends in August.

Meanwhile, PMLN supreme leader Nawaz Sharif chaired a party meeting via video link in London on Saturday night, where he has been in self-imposed exile since November 2019.

PMLN spokesperson and Union Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said: “Nawaz Sharif has instructed party leaders and workers to start preparations for the elections in Punjab. He has also asked PM Shehbaz Sharif to form a parliamentary committee to award the votes.”

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)