Pakistan's top court will on Wednesday hear Prime Minister Imran Khan's legal team defend his bid to block an opposition bid to oust him, a move his critics say was unconstitutional and which has ushered in a new phase of political turmoil.
Khan, a former cricket star, lost his parliamentary majority last week and had been facing a no-confidence vote tabled by the opposition that he was expected to lose on Sunday.
But the deputy speaker of parliament, a member of Khan's party, threw out the motion, ruling it was part of a foreign conspiracy and unconstitutional. Khan then dissolved parliament.
The stand-off has thrown the nuclear-armed country of 220 million people, ruled by the military for extended periods since independence in 1947, into a full-blown constitutional crisis.
The opposition has challenged the decision to block the vote in the Supreme Court, which began deliberating the case on Monday. The court will on Wednesday hear from lawyers for Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party.
The Supreme Court panel of five judges has not said when it will give a ruling. It could order parliament be reconstituted, call for fresh elections or bar Khan from power if he is found to have violated the constitution.
It could also decide that it cannot intervene in parliamentary affairs.
Pakistan's military is facing growing opposition calls to weigh in on the legitimacy of Khan's complaints about a foreign plot against him, which he said was being orchestrated by the United States.
The United States dismissed the accusation.
A senior leader of the opposition, Maryam Nawaz, said the military should clarify if it had told a top-level security meeting that the United States had conspired with the opposition to topple his government, as Khan has said it did.
"Imran Khan has used the National Security Committee for his political gains," she said late on Tuesday.
Pakistan's military has not confirmed or denied Khan's accusation but an official with knowledge of the matter, who declined to be identified, told Reuters on Tuesday that security agencies had not found credible evidence to confirm Khan's complaint of a conspiracy..
The military has stepped in to remove civilian governments and take over on three occasions, citing the need to end political uncertainty, though it says it is not involved in politics.
(Reporting by Asif Shahzad and Gibran Naiyyar Peshimam in Islamabad
Writing by Alasdair Pal
Editing by Robert Birsel)
(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Dear Reader,
Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. Your encouragement and constant feedback on how to improve our offering have only made our resolve and commitment to these ideals stronger. Even during these difficult times arising out of Covid-19, we continue to remain committed to keeping you informed and updated with credible news, authoritative views and incisive commentary on topical issues of relevance.
We, however, have a request.
As we battle the economic impact of the pandemic, we need your support even more, so that we can continue to offer you more quality content. Our subscription model has seen an encouraging response from many of you, who have subscribed to our online content. More subscription to our online content can only help us achieve the goals of offering you even better and more relevant content. We believe in free, fair and credible journalism. Your support through more subscriptions can help us practise the journalism to which we are committed.
Support quality journalism and subscribe to Business Standard.
Digital Editor
RECOMMENDED FOR YOU