LAHORE: Pakistan's Opposition on Monday submitted a no-trust move against Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar, weeks after moving a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Imran Khan.
Pakistan has been on the edge since Opposition parties on March 8 submitted the no-confidence motion before the National Assembly Secretariat, alleging that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government led by Prime Minister Khan was responsible for the economic crisis and the spiralling inflation in the country.
The Opposition rushed to bring the no-confidence motion against Khan's "blue-eyed" Buzdar to forestall the PTI government's possible plan to dissolve the Punjab Assembly in case of the premier's ouster.
The Opposition Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) submitted the motion against Buzdar, 52, with the signatures of 127 lawmakers.
The Opposition also filed a requisition for the assembly session for taking up its resolution.
The resolution says Punjab Chief Minister Buzdar has lost the trust of the House.
"Buzdar has violated the Constitution by not running the affairs of the province of 110 million people in accordance with it. He also worked against the spirit of democracy during the last three-and-a-half years," the resolution said.
Talking to reporters after submitting the resolution, PML-N lawmaker Rana Mashhood said that the Opposition will also bring a no-trust motion against National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser and Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani.
"It is a writing on the wall that both Imran Khan and Usman Buzdar cannot survive the no-confidence motions therefore the only honourable exit for them is to resign," he said, adding that the Opposition has more than the required numbers to send the Buzdar government home.
To a question, Mashhood said that the name of the new chief minister will be announced at an appropriate time.
Earlier, the PTI core committee was considering the dissolution of the Punjab Assembly in case of Khan's ouster to press for fresh polls.
The PML-Q, the key ally of the government which has 10 seats in the Punjab Assembly, has already hinted at joining hands with the Opposition.
The PML-Q claims that it has been offered the Punjab chief minister slot by the Opposition in return for supporting the no-confidence motion against Khan.
The political temperature has been slowly reaching a boiling point in the wake of the no-trust move by the Opposition on March 8.
The make and breakpoint for Prime Minister Khan is likely to be reached by the end of next week.
The Opposition parties are confident that they can get the support of 172 members in the house of 342 to dislodge the government, while the government claims that it enjoys the required support in the house to foil the attempt.
Khan, 69, came to power in 2018 with promises to create a Naya Pakistan' but miserably failed to address the basic problem of keeping the prices of commodities in control, giving air to the sails of opposition ships to make war on his government.
With major allies of Khan looking the other way and about two dozen PTI members of parliament revolting against him, and the powerful establishment not providing a helping hand, he is less likely to get the support of the much-coveted 172 lawmakers.
Khan is heading a coalition government and he can be removed if some of the partners decide to switch sides. He is facing a rebellion by his about two dozen lawmakers and allied parties which are also reluctant to pledge support to him.
Both Khan and his ministers are trying to give the impression that everything was fine and he would come out victorious out of the trial.
The PTI has 155 members in the 342-member National Assembly and needs at least 172 lawmakers on its side to remain in the government.