Pakistan Reader# 523, 18 January 2023
Abigail Miriam Fernandez
On 18 January, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly was dissolved after Governor Haji Ghulam Ali signed and approved Chief Minister Mahmood Khan’s summary for the dissolution of the provincial assembly. According to the notification, the KP Assembly and provincial cabinet were dissolved with immediate effect under Clause 1 of Article 112 of the Constitution. Further, the notices stated that the caretaker CM would be appointed by the governor in consultation with Mahmood and Leader of the Opposition Akram Khan Durrani. The governor has also called on them to also provide the names of their nominees for the position by 21 January.
Mahmood said, “We will return with a two-thirds majority, not just in KP but in all of Pakistan and form a government on the basis of our performance.”
How was the dissolution process different for the KP assembly?
The dissolution of the KP Assembly comes days after the dissolution of the Punjab Provincial Assembly. However, unlike Parvez Elahi, Mahmood Khan did not have to prove his confidence in the assembly. Additionally, in the case of KP, the governor signed off on the CM’s summary for the dissolution of the assembly, which was not the case in Punjab.
Why has Imran Khan decided to dissolve the KP assembly?
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa becomes the second regional assembly to be brought down by Imran Khan in his attempts to bring in early elections. Previously, Imran Khan said that if the elections were to be held in 66 per cent of the country after the dissolution of the assemblies, the government would be unable to stop general elections from taking place. The rationale behind Imran Khan’s calls for dissolution can be deciphered from different angles.
1. Dissolution to prove his electoral power
One of the main reasons Imran Khan called for the dissolution of the two provincial assemblies is his attempt to prove that he hold the majority. He has been advocating this narrative ever since he lost the no-confidence motion which removed his government from power. In earlier statements, he has claimed that lessons should be thought through elections and has expressed confidence in securing the majority.
2. Dissolution as a constitutional tool
As per Pakistan’s Constitution, the chief minister of a province has the authority to advise the governor to dissolve the assembly before its term completion of five years. The assembly stands dissolved in 48 hours irrespective of the governor accepting the advice. Following the dissolution of the assembly, the ECP is bound to conduct provincial elections within a 90-day period. Imran Khan used this constitutional measure to initiate a series of provincial elections in an attempt to pressurize the federal government for the general elections.
3. Dissolution to hurt the morale of the ruling coalition
The recent strategies adopted by Imran Khan including the dissolution plans and mass resignations has in a way hurt the morale of the ruling coalition. This coupled with the PTI’s success in a few by-poll elections has challenged the ruling coalition authority. Additionally, the PTI’s successes have given them momentum in their efforts waged against the ruling coalition.
4. Dissolution as a strategy
Imran Khan has wisely only decided to dissolve the assemblies of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa where they hold the majority. In Sindh and Balochistan, the PTI forms the opposition thus if they choose to resign or dissolve from these assemblies it would keep them out of the consultation for appointing the caretaker governments during the elections in those provinces.
References
Arif Hayat, “CM Mahmood sends summary for dissolution of KP assembly to governor,” Dawn, 18 January 2022
Arif Hayat, “KP Assembly dissolved as governor approves CM Mahmood’s summary,” Dawn, 18 January 2022
“Governor signs summary dissolving K-P Assembly,” The Express Tribune, 18 January 2022
Mifrah Haq, “Imran Khan attempts provincial power play to spur Pakistan polls,” Nikkei Asia, 2 December 2022
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