At the conclusion of a hearing that has hit Pakistan for the past four days, Pakistan’s supreme judge, Umar Ata Bandial, said Khan had broken the law in an attempt to stop the vote, which was widely expected to oust him. The verdict states that Khan made the mistake of ordering the deputy speaker of parliament, a close ally, to suspend the vote and the mistake of asking the president to dissolve parliament on Sunday morning. The five-judge panel ordered a national assembly meeting on Saturday to allow the vote of confidence to take place. No Member of Parliament shall have any restrictions on voting. Speaking after the verdict, Kahn said he would continue to fight and address the nation on Friday. “I will always continue to fight for Pack until the last ball,” he said on Twitter, adding that he had convened a cabinet meeting on Friday. Opposition leader Shahbaz Sharif congratulated the nation and said: “Pakistan’s constitution has been restored. “Pakistan’s judiciary has upheld itself and its sanctity and has strengthened Pakistan’s sovereignty and justice.” Raza Rambani, a senator and opposition lawyer, said: “This is a landmark and historic decision and would help uphold the rule of law. “It will have far-reaching implications for Pakistan and the Democratic Party, as the speaker has violated Pakistan’s constitution.” The vote was tabled by the opposition coalition last month on what he said was a political and economic mismanagement of Khan. As he approached, there was a wave of distancing from Khan’s supporters and it became clear that he had lost his majority and was certain to lose the vote. But hours before Sunday’s vote, the vice president rejected the proposal, citing allegations that it was the result of a “foreign conspiracy” by the West to overthrow Khan. Hahn then ordered the president to dissolve parliament and called new elections in three months. The move sparked a constitutional crisis and sparked outrage from the opposition, which described it as an anti-democratic move by a prime minister trying to retain power despite losing parliamentary support. The opposition coalition took the matter to the Supreme Court, where it has been discussed for the past four days. On Thursday, the last day of the hearing, Judge Bandial stressed that they want Pakistan to remain stable, noting that “assemblies cannot be dissolved while a vote of no confidence against the prime minister is pending.” Khan, 69, is a former playboy cricketer who became a conservative Islamist politician, who was elected in 2018 with the promise of rooting out corruption and boosting the economy. Javed Nusrat, a prominent Pakistani columnist, said Khan could also continue to use anti-American narratives against the Supreme Court because such narratives work.
