Days after losing the no-confidence motion in Parliament, former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Tuesday called for general elections to be held early, PTI reported.
In a video posted on the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party’s official Twitter handle, the cricketer-turned-politician said that no army or foreign nation will protect the country’s democracy,
“Only the people of Pakistan can safeguard their freedoms and the sanctity of democratic institutions,” Khan said.
He also announced that he will hold his first meeting in Peshawar on Wednesday. “I want all our people to come, as Pakistan was created as an independent, sovereign state not as a puppet state of foreign powers,” Khan said.
In the early hours of Sunday, Khan became the first prime minister in the country’s history to lose a no-confidence vote. The no-confidence motion, which required 172 votes in the 342-seat Parliament to pass, was supported by 174 politicians.
The 69-year-old had tried to sidestep the no-trust vote by dissolving Parliament and calling early elections, but Pakistan’s Supreme Court restored the National Assembly and ordered its speaker to call a session on April 9.
He has repeatedly claimed that the Opposition colluded with the United States to unseat him because of his foreign policy choices. The White House, however, denied any involvement in Pakistan’s internal politics.
On Tuesday, Khan again blamed a “grand conspiracy” for his removal as prime minister.
On Monday, Pakistan’s Parliament selected Shehbaz Sharif as the country’s new prime minister. He led the Opposition’s bid in Parliament to remove Khan.
However, ahead of the vote, Khan and all lawmakers of his party resigned en masse, boycotting the election of Sharif.
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