Skip to content 
Search

Latest Stories

Imran Khan dismissed as Pakistan prime minister after losing no-confidence vote

Imran Khan dismissed as Pakistan prime minister after losing no-confidence vote

Imran Khan was dismissed on Sunday as Pakistan prime minister after losing a no-confidence vote in parliament following weeks of political turmoil.

It was not immediately clear when a new premier will be chosen, but Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) chief Shehbaz Sharif was almost certain to be picked to lead the nuclear-armed nation of 220 million people.


No prime mister has ever served a full term in Pakistan, but Khan is the first to lose office this way.

Acting speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq said 174 lawmakers had voted in favour of the motion, "consequently the vote of no confidence has passed".

Khan, 69, tried everything he could to stay in power -- including dissolving parliament and calling a fresh election -- but the Supreme Court deemed all his actions illegal last week, and ordered the assembly to reconvene and vote.

There was drama right until the midnight deadline ordered by the Supreme Court, with the speaker of the assembly -- a Khan loyalist -- resigning at the last minute.

In the end the session continued through to Sunday with a replacement.

"We will put a balm on the wounds of this nation," Sharif said immediately after the result was announced.

Khan, who was not present, lost his majority in the 342-seat assembly through defections by coalition partners and members of his own party, and the opposition had needed just 172 votes to dismiss him.

- Militancy on the rise -

Whoever takes over will still have to deal with the issues that bedevilled Khan -- soaring inflation, a feeble rupee and crippling debt.

Militancy is also on the rise, with Pakistan's Taliban emboldened by the return to power last year of the hardline Islamist group in neighbouring Afghanistan.

Tempers rose earlier when Sharif insisted a vote be held immediately -- as ordered by the Supreme Court on Thursday -- but Khan loyalists demanded discussion first on their leader's claims there had been foreign interference in the process.

Foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi accused the opposition of leading the country down a dangerous path.

"History will expose all those, who set the stage for this move to topple the government," he said, to chants of "vote, vote" from the opposition.

Khan insists he has been the victim of a "regime change" conspiracy involving the United States.

He said the PML-N and the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) -- two normally feuding dynastic groups who joined forces to oust him -- had conspired with Washington to bring the no-confidence vote because of his opposition to US foreign policy, particularly in Muslim nations such as Iraq and Afghanistan.

He also accused the opposition of buying support in the assembly with "open horse-trading... selling of lawmakers like goats and sheep".

How long the next government lasts is also a matter of speculation.

The opposition said previously they wanted an early election -- which must be called by October next year -- but taking power gives them the opportunity to set their own agenda and end a string of probes they said Khan launched vindictively against them.

Local media quoted an election commission official as saying it would take them at least seven months to prepare for a national vote.

Publicly the military appears to be keeping out of the current fray, but there have been four coups since independence in 1947 and the country has spent more than three decades under army rule.

More For You

Court to review teen's sentence in Bhim Kohli case
Bhim Kohli

Court to review teen's sentence in Bhim Kohli case

THE seven-year prison sentence handed to a 15-year-old boy convicted of the manslaughter of 80-year-old Bhim Sen Kohli is to be reviewed under the UK’s Unduly Lenient Sentence (ULS) scheme.

The Attorney General’s Office confirmed on Friday (5) that the teenager’s sentence will now be considered by the Court of Appeal.

Keep ReadingShow less
Dalai Lama hopes to live 'beyond 130 years'

Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama attends a prayer meet held for his long life at the Dalai Lama temple in the northern hill town of Dharamshala, India, July 5, 2025. REUTERS/Anushree Fadnavis

Dalai Lama hopes to live 'beyond 130 years'

THE Dalai Lama said on Saturday (5) he hopes to live until he is more than 130 years old, two decades longer than his previous prediction, following his assurance to followers that he would reincarnate as the spiritual head of the faith upon his death.

The Nobel Peace Prize winner was speaking during a ceremony organised by his followers to offer prayers for his long life, ahead of his 90th birthday on Sunday (6), and as China insists it will choose his successor. The Dalai Lama told Reuters in December he might live to 110.

Keep ReadingShow less
UK heatwave by mid-July

Daytime temperatures meeting or exceeding set thresholds of 25°C

iStock

Met Office warns of potential third UK heatwave by mid-July

Key points

  • Met Office forecasts rising temperatures by mid-July
  • Possible third heatwave after record-breaking June
  • High pressure system likely to bring hot air from the Atlantic
  • Yellow rain warning and flood alerts issued in parts of Scotland and Cumbria

Possible heatwave to return by mid-July

The UK could experience its third heatwave in a month by mid-July, the Met Office has said. Forecasters expect rising heat and humidity during the second weekend of July, following two weekends of unusually warm weather in late June.

June was officially the hottest on record in England, and the return of high temperatures could mean another heatwave for parts of the country. However, the Met Office cautioned that it is too early to confirm how hot conditions will get.

Keep ReadingShow less
crypto

Two men have been jailed for defrauding investors of £1.5 million through a fake crypto investment scheme. (Representational image: iStock)

iStock

Two jailed over £1.5m crypto investment scam

TWO people who duped investors of £1.5 million by selling fake investments in crypto have been jailed for 12 years, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said.

Raymondip Bedi, of Bromley, and Patrick Mavanga, of Peckham, conned at least 65 people by cold-calling them between February 2017 and June 2019. They operated companies including CCX Capital and Astaria Group LLP.

Keep ReadingShow less
Manchester Police probes over 1,000 child sexual abuse suspects

Photo for representation. (iStock)

Getty Images/iStockphoto

Manchester Police probes over 1,000 child sexual abuse suspects

GREATER MANCHESTER POLICE is now investigating more than 1,000 child sexual abuse suspects, following years of public criticism and institutional failings in tackling child sexual exploitation.

A new report by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) has revealed the force has made “significant improvements” in dealing with group-based sexual abuse and related crimes.

Keep ReadingShow less