Islamabad: The Supreme Court of Pakistan today quashed Deputy Speaker Qasim Khan Suri's April 3 ruling and the subsequent dissolution of the National Assembly stating 'unconstitutional' and ordered the revival of no confidence motion against Prime Minister Imran Khan.
Khan will face no-confidence motion on April 09.
A five-member bench headed by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial, which also included Justices Munib Akhtar, Jamal Khan Mandokhel, Ijazul Ahsan and Mazhar Alam Khan, announced the verdict.
The Court termed the Imran Khan government's decision to ask President Arif Alvi to dissolve the Assembly against the constitution of Pakistan and illegal. The verdict was passed with all five judges unanimously voting against it.
The Court has ruled the move by the government to dismiss the no-confidence motion is a clear violation of Article 95 of the Constitution.
The Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial, while hearing a petition on whether Imran Khan and his allies had the legal right to dissolve parliament, had said that Suri’s order to dismiss the no-confidence motion against the former Prime Minister, was “erroneous”.
The apex Court also summoned the Election Commission of Pakistan and its secretary.
The prevailing crisis began to unfold after the opposition submitted a no-confidence motion against the Prime Minister on March 28. The voting was scheduled to be held on April 3 but the deputy speaker rejected the motion. PM Khan has called the motion a conspiracy by the United States to destabilise Pakistan.