The formation of a new government will take some time.
Islamabad:
Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan’s party claimed on Wednesday that its “mandate was stolen in the dark” after the country’s major parties decided to form a coalition government led by Pakistan Muslim League chief Shehbaz Sharif.
On Tuesday night, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) unexpectedly nominated 72-year-old Shehbaz as its candidate for prime minister, instead of the party’s top leader and three-time former prime minister Nawaz Sharif.
Raof Hassan, central information minister for Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, said Imran’s “mandate was stolen in the dark”.
In a post on X, Hassan said, “Pakistan is being put under [the] Referring to a possible coalition government led by the Muslim League, he said, “The decision to allow a group of criminals to form the government, who have been rejected by the people, reflects a short-sighted view of the challenges facing the country.” ”
Independent candidates unexpectedly won the most seats in parliament, despite being backed by Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party. They won 92 seats in the 266-member National Assembly.
To form a government, a party must win 133 of the 265 contested seats in the 266-member National Assembly.
Cricketer-turned-politician Khan, 71, is in jail after being convicted in a corruption case, while the PTI-backed candidate is contesting as an independent as the party loses its electoral symbol “bat” after controversy over organizing the elections .
A PTI spokesperson said the current situation “shocks the very essence of democratic principles and norms” and reflects “disdain for national interests and the welfare of the people”.
Hassan added: “The forces of darkness must be stopped and power must be transferred to leaders elected by the people.”
The Election Commission of Pakistan announced that most independent candidates backed by PTI won 101 seats, followed by Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) with 75 seats, Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) with 54 seats, and Pakistan Muttahida The Qaumi Movement (MQM-P) won 17 seats.
Other parties secured 17 seats, while the results of 1 constituency were retained.
The formation of a new government will take some time.
Sources said the newly elected members of parliament should submit details of election expenses by February 18, after which the Election Commission of Pakistan will issue notifications of elected members by February 22.
Within the next three days, all independent candidates are expected to join the party, which will then be allocated 60 reserved seats for women and 10 reserved seats for minorities.
The next stage will be a meeting of the National Assembly to swear in new members. The president has until February 29 to convene a session, but sources said the National Assembly’s session could be held on February 26, while the provincial assemblies could convene on the same day or the next day.
Once the oath has been taken, the new members will become full members of their respective Houses of Representatives. Sources said elections for the Speaker, Deputy Speaker and Prime Minister (in the case of the National Assembly) will then take place, while the election of chief ministers for provincial assemblies will also begin.
The election takes place on February 8, and the first session of Parliament should be held within 21 days of polling day.
Now that all obstacles to forming a new government have been resolved, it is expected that the new government will be in place early next month.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
