Pak PM ‘won’t recognise imported’ govt as no-confidence vote looms

Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan on Saturday warned that if he is ousted from power, he will not recognise an "imported" opposition government, the BBC reports.

The National Assembly session to decide the fate of Prime Minister Imran Khan via voting on a no-confidence vote against him was adjourned yet again and expected to resume at 9:30pm after Isha prayers on Saturday.

Voting on the no-confidence motion against the prime minister was the fourth item on yesterday's agenda but it was yet to happen, the Dawn reported.

While the opposition came out in full force, very few members of the treasury benches were in attendance before the session was adjourned. Prime Minister Imran Khan was also not present.

The opposition needs the support of at least 172 lawmakers from a total of 342 to oust the premier through the no-trust move, the Dawn report added.

Speaking ahead of a no-confidence vote in parliament, which he is expected to lose, Khan said he accepted the Supreme Court decision that he must face the vote, but repeated claims the US is leading a conspiracy to remove him.

Washington has repeatedly denied the accusations.

Khan, who enjoyed widespread popular support when he took office, said he would not recognise any opposition government that replaced him.

"I will not accept an imported government," he told the nation in a late-night address, suggesting the move to oust him was part of a foreign conspiracy and calling for peaceful protests on Sunday. "I'm ready for a struggle."

Khan also convened a cabinet meeting for Saturday night as delays dragged on over a vote in parliament on whether to oust him, Reuters reported.

The meeting came hours after parliament was abruptly adjourned before the no-confidence vote, prolonging political uncertainty in the nuclear-armed country.

The cabinet was set to meet again at 9pm, people familiar with the matter said.

"We don't know the agenda of the meeting," one government official told Reuters. "We just have been instructed to meet."

Members of Khan's party had suggested on Friday they would try to delay the vote as much as possible. His allies had blocked a similar vote last Sunday, but the country's Supreme Court ruled that move unconstitutional, setting up Saturday's session. 

Before Saturday's session was adjourned, opposition leader Shehbaz Sharif, expected to become prime minister if Khan is ousted, urged lower house Speaker Asad Qaiser to ensure the vote was carried out as a matter of priority.

The speaker said he would implement the court order "in true letter and spirit".

Khan, 69, surged to power in 2018 with the military's support but recently lost his parliamentary majority when allies quit his coalition government.

Opposition and some analysts say that Khan has fallen out with the military, a claim he and the military have denied.

Meanwhile, it is still unclear how long Khan's allies might seek to delay the vote. Lawyer Salahuddin Ahmed, who had argued in court for the vote to go ahead, said he believed it must occur before midnight.

As the turmoil continued, Pakistan's rupee hit all-time lows on Thursday and foreign exchange reserves tumbled. The central bank raised its benchmark interest rate by 2.5 percentage points, the biggest hike since 1996, Reuters reported.

If Khan loses the no-confidence vote, the opposition will put forward a candidate for prime minister.

Sharif, the younger brother of three-time former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, said after the court ruling that the opposition had nominated him to take over should Khan be ousted.