Pakistan Parliament dissolved to hold national election

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan’s Parliament was dissolved by President Arif Alvi on Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s advice late on Wednesday night, the presidential office said, setting the stage for a national election amid political and economic crises.

The advice came three days ahead of the end of Parliament’s five-year term on Saturday.

It will be followed with a caretaker administration to be picked by Mr Sharif and an opposition leader in the outgoing Parliament, to hold a new election in 90 days.

“I will tonight advise the President to dissolve the Parliament,” Mr Sharif earlier told Parliament.

He said he would start discussions with the opposition leader on Thursday to pick from candidates recommended from both sides to nominate as caretaker prime minister.

The vote, however,

could be delayed several months,

with the election commission set to start redrawing hundreds of constituencies based on a fresh census.

Analysts have said any delay to the election could fuel public anger and add to uncertainty in the nuclear-armed nation.

The last general election, in July 2018, was won by the party of

cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan,

who was sworn in days later as prime minister.

Khan has been at the heart of political turmoil since

he was ousted as prime minister

in a no-confidence vote in 2022, raising concern about Pakistan’s stability.

He has since been

convicted and jailed in a graft case,

following which he has been barred from taking part in any election for five years.

Khan has accused the powerful military, which has ruled Pakistan for decades since independence in 1947, of being responsible for his ouster. The military has denied the charge.

Khan was replaced by Mr Sharif, who has been grappling with a debilitating economic crisis and historically high inflation levels as the Pakistani government implemented painful reforms to secure funding from the International Monetary Fund.

In addition to the legal issues that could crop up if the vote is delayed, the sidelining of Khan, the country’s most popular leader according to polls, will cast doubt over the credibility of the election. REUTERS