A vote of confidence for Khan will now be held on Saturday at 10:30 a.m. local (1:30 a.m. ET). Kahn had called the election a dramatic move to seize power after the vice-president blocked a no-confidence motion against him last Sunday, which looked almost certain he would win. Vice President Qasim Khan Suri said he had acted to prevent a “foreign conspiracy” to overthrow Khan’s regime. This move, and the subsequent dissolution of parliament by Kahn, angered the opposition, which for months demanded his removal over allegations of misgovernance and financial mismanagement. The opposition responded by accusing Khan of treason and asking the country’s highest court to rule on whether the prime minister had violated the constitution. The court battle is the latest escalation of a crisis that has been simmering for weeks, with Khan already losing the support of key political allies and the country’s powerful army. Military spokesman Lt. Gen. Babar Iftihar distanced the country’s military from the developments in a statement on Sunday, insisting it was not involved in what is a “purely political situation.” Pakistan, a nation of 220 million, has struggled with political instability since its formation in 1947 with multiple regime changes and military coups. No prime minister has ever completed a full five-year term under the current 1973 constitution. The country’s main opposition parties have been rallying for Khan’s ouster since he came to power in 2018 after elections plunged into allegations of vote-rigging and aggression. More recently, he has been accused of financial mismanagement as his government struggles with depletion of foreign exchange reserves and double-digit inflation, with the cost of basic necessities such as food and fuel soaring. Khan’s response was to double down on allegations that opposition to him was fueled by the United States. He has not provided any evidence to support his allegations and the State Department has denied the allegations.
