Apr 4, 2022 - World

Pakistan’s Supreme Court debates Imran Khan’s surprise election call

Dave Lawler

Catching up on a crazy news cycle in Islamabad. Photo: Aamir Qureshi/AFP via Getty

Pakistan’s Supreme Court on Monday began hearing a challenge to Prime Minister Imran Khan’s surprise move to suspend parliament and call for elections before a no-confidence vote that could have removed him from power.

Why it matters: Khan’s move to thwart the bid to remove him — which was thought to be backed by the powerful security elites who helped put him in power — has sparked a constitutional crisis and highlighted the country’s messy relationship with the United States.

Khan has accused the U.S. of conspiring with the opposition to remove him, without providing evidence.
He has also called on his highly enthusiastic supporters to take to the streets, and he claimed the opposition is afraid to face him at the ballot box.

The big picture: Khan named a former chief justice as caretaker prime minister Monday as part of an attempt to solidify the move toward early elections before the Supreme Court rules.

In the packed courtroom on Pakistan’s Supreme Court debates Khan’s surprise election call Monday… “The justices’ tone suggested that despite many constitutional experts’ views that the court would likely rule in favor of the opposition, the verdict was far from settled,” the NYT reports.

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Pakistan’s Supreme Court debates Imran Khan’s surprise election call

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