Punjab Assembly Dissolved

The Punjab Assembly has been dissolved after the governor, Baligh Ur Rehman, refused to sign the summary. “I have decided not to become part of the process leading to the dissolution of the Punjab Assembly.” the governor wrote on Twitter.

“I would rather let the Constitution and law take its own course.” he said in this Tweet. “Doing so will not hamper any legal process as Constitution clearly provides a way forward.” he added.

It is pertinent to mention that Chief Minister of Punjab, Pervez Elahi, had forwarded the summary of dissolution on Thursday and as per the constitution, the assembly dissolves within 48 hours regardless of the governor’s decision.

Meanwhile, the Punjab Governor has written a letter to PML-Q leader, Pervez Elahi, and PML-N leader, Hamza Shehbaz, for the post of caretaker Chief Minister.

“The care-taker Chief Minister shall be appointed by the undersigned in consultation with the outgoing Chief Minister and the Leader of the Opposition in the outgoing Provincial Assembly as per Article 224(1A) of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.” said the letter.

If both fail to agree on a name, the appointment for caretaker Chief Minister will be made by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP). Meanwhile, Pervez Elahi will continue to perform his duties until the appointment of a caretaker Chief Minister.

The letter asked to provide the name of the person to be appointed as caretaker Chief Minister to be submitted within three days (by 17th January 2023).