Pakistan: Governor de-notifies Parvez Elahi as Punjab CM

In Pakistan, Punjab state is now at centre of political tug of war. Governor Balighur Rehman has de-notified Chaudhry Parvez Elahi as the chief minister, it emerged in the wee hours of Friday,citing a failure to take the vote of confidence from the provincial assembly as the political turmoil in Pakistan's largest province persists. Speaker Sibtain Khan disposed of Rehman’s order, saying that the instructions were “against the Constitution and Rules of Procedure”

Since CM has refrained from obtaining Vote of Confidence at the appointed day and time therefore he ceases to hold office. Orders issued this evening pic.twitter.com/ZWnK376DfP

— M Baligh Ur Rehman (@MBalighurRehman) December 22, 2022

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) — a strong ally of Elahi — rejected the governor's notification. PTI  Senior Vice President Fawad Chaudhry said that the notification holds “no legal status” and Elahi also announced approaching the court. Earlier, a large number of supporters of Pakistan's ousted prime minister Imran Khan "besieged" the governor’s house in Lahore on Thursday and warned the governor of de-notifying the chief executive of Punjab province on the pretext of a trust vote. Khan, addressing the participants via video link from his residence in Lahore, criticised the federal government for creating hurdles in the dissolution of the Punjab Assembly.