'No conspiracy to topple govt': Army contradicts Pakistan PM Imran Khan

Pakistan’s Supreme Court adjourned until Wednesday a hearing to decide the legality of Prime Minister Imran Khan’s blocking of an opposition bid to oust him, a dispute that has led to political turmoil in the country.

Khan lost his parliamentary majority last week and had been facing a no-confidence vote tabled by a united opposition.
 

But the deputy speaker of parliament, a member of Khan’s party, threw out the motion, ruling it was part of a foreign conspiracy and unconstitutional. Khan then dissolved parliament.

Official sources told The Express Tribune newspaper that a wrong impression was given about the military leadership endorsing the view of the government.

The court could order that parliament be reconstituted, call for a new election or bar Khan from standing again if he is found to have acted unconstitutionally.

The court could also decide that it cannot intervene in parliamentary affairs.

Lengthy legal proceedings would create a power vacuum with implications for issues such as talks with the International Monetary Fund to secure funds to support the cash-strapped economy.

Pakistan's election commission on Tuesday said it will fulfil its responsibility to hold general elections in the country if required.

No evidence of plot

The turmoil also threatens to damage ties with long-time ally the United States, after Khan accused it of being behind the plot to overthrow him. The United States dismissed the accusation.

Khan, who was for years critical of the US involvement in Afghanistan, accused opposition of being part of a foreign conspiracy.

Russia has criticised the US for making “another attempt of shameless interference” into the internal affairs of Pakistan and asserted that Prime Minister Imran Khan was paying the price for being “disobedient” to Washington and being punished for visiting Russia in February this year.

Meanwhile, Farah Khan a close friend of Prime Minister Imran Khan's third wife Bushra Bibi, has fled the country following reports that she could be arrested if a new government is installed in Pakistan.

IMF funding virtually on hold

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) funding to the country is expected to hit another ‘pause’ according to a report.

IMF’s resident representative in Islamabad, Esther Perez Ruiz said that the fund would engage once the new government is formed. The fund of $6 billion hit a deadlock when Prime Minister Imran Khan announced a major relief package involving a tax amnesty scheme and energy price cuts.