Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly dissolution summary sent to governor

Peshawar: The government in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Tuesday sent a summary to the governor for the approval of dissolution of the provincial assembly before midnight, a move aimed at forcing the federal government to announce snap polls.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Mehmood Khan sent the summary to Governor Haji Ghulam Ali, urging him to dissolve the assembly.

"In pursuance of provisions of Article 112(1) of the Constitution of Pakistan, I do hereby forward my advice for dissolution of provincial assembly of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on 17th January, 2023," he said in a statement.

The governor has already spoken his mind of not signing the dissolution summary of the assembly, saying he would not be part of this "undemocratic process." According to the Constitution, the assembly will stand dissolved automatically after 48 hours if the governor refused to sign a dissolution summary sent by the chief minister.

On January 14, the Punjab Assembly was dissolved despite the Punjab governor’s refusal to sign the summary for the provincial assembly's dissolution.

KPK Chief Minister Khan on Tuesday chaired the last meeting of his cabinet and discussed a 17-point agenda.

The opposition members in the KPK Assembly did not move no-confidence motion against the chief minister to stop the dissolution of the assembly for at least a week.

Former prime minister Imran Khan’s party enjoys two-third majority in the KPK Assembly. Therefore, the opposition stands no chance to gain anything from the no confidence motion against the chief minister.

Political pundits believe that the federal government led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is in no mood to succumb to the pressure of Khan whatsoever for holding general elections in the country before expiry of scheduled time in August this year.

The federal government will straight away go for holding elections in two provinces - Punjab and the KPK - after dissolution of the assemblies.

Federal Information Minister Maryum Aurangzeb has clearly stated that general elections as per the constitution of the country will be held in October this year.