Claims of ousted Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan that the United States had induced a no-confidence vote in the parliament to remove him are "ridiculous," Chairman of Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Committee of Senate of Pakistan Saleem Mandviwalla told Sputnik
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 11th April, 2022) Claims of ousted Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan that the United States had induced a no-confidence vote in the parliament to remove him are "ridiculous," Chairman of Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Committee of Senate of Pakistan Saleem Mandviwalla told Sputnik.
On March 31, in the wake of the first no-confidence vote, Khan addressed the nation, saying that the US "threatened" him and sought to oust him over his visit to Russia on February 24. The US firmly refuted those claims, saying that they are false, as the US does not support one political party over another in Pakistan, but instead supports the principles of rule of law. On Sunday, on the second try, the Pakistani parliament ousted Khan in a vote of no-confidence, with the motion succeeding by a vote of 174-0. On Monday, the Pakistani parliament picked opposition leader Shehbaz Sharif as the country's new prime minister.
"Imran Khan's claim about a Western conspiracy to oust him is just ridiculous. He bases his claim on a telegram sent by our Ambassador. The no-confidence motion had been planned by opposition long before the reported telegram. The so-called message from the US didn't help with the no-confidence. Conspiracy is always discreet and for Imran Khan to claim that the US was behind the no-confidence by a threatening message through the Ambassador can only be termed as ridiculous," Mandviwalla, a member of opposition Pakistan Peoples Party, said.
He noted that the US had always been "a formidable partner" for Pakistan, and that both Islamabad and Washington need each other. And even though Khan's visit to Moscow must be disappointing to the US amid the Ukrainian crisis, it could not create "permanent fissures" in the US-Pakistani relations, Mandviwalla said.
"Reasons for the vote of no-confidence against the former Prime Minister Imran khan are not difficult to fathom. There were multiple factors a) he has lost the confidence of the public for making false promises, b) his arrogance led to divisions within his own party, c) he failed to provide good governance. Many of his cabinet members had a tainted past and were inexperienced in running the affairs of the state, d) he failed to provide relief to the public and inflation had reached an unprecedented level," he said.
Last week, Khan asked Pakistani President Arif Alvi to dissolve the parliament following the dismissal of the motion of no confidence in Khan as unconstitutional. The decision to cancel the no confidence vote was challenged in court by the opposition. The Supreme Court ruled to hold the voting, with Khan saying that the opposition's motion was an attempt by foreign powers to depose him.
