With Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan virtually losing the majority in the 342-member National Assembly after the defection of two key allies, backdoor efforts are underway to reach a deal between the premier and the joint opposition to dissolve the lower house, according to a highly placed source.
The first on the list is Hussain Shaheed Suhrawardy, a Bengali politician from then East Pakistan who served as the fifth prime minister. He was arrested in January 1962 and put in jail on bogus charges of "anti-state activities". His actual crime was his refusal to support military ruler General Ayub Khan.
The envoy emphasised that 'peaceful relations' with all Pakistan's neighbours, including India, were accorded 'high priority' in the foreign policy vision outlined by the incoming leadership in Pakistan.
PTI spokesman Fawad Chaudhry said that they have the required numbers to form government.
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday chose Lt Gen Asim Munir as the new Army chief to replace incumbent General Qamar Javed Bajwa.
The court issued its reserved ruling, upsetting the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), which claimed the arrest was illegal and that the IHC would rule in favour of party chief Imran Khan.
The SC has restored the National Assembly after it declared the government's decision to dissolve the assembly and NA Deputy Speaker Qasim Suri's ruling against the Constitution.
The newly-elected National Assembly, the lower house of Parliament, is meeting to elect the prime minister.
Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan said on Tuesday that he would like to have a TV debate with his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi to resolve differences between the two neighbouring countries.
'Therefore, these people want Imran Khan out of the elections whenever it is held.' 'For this, he will have to be disqualified from contesting on the basis of cases against him, declaring that he is not sadiq (honest) and ameen (righteous).'
As many as 200 Hindu pilgrims, most of them from India, were overwhelmed with emotions as they prayed at the 100-year-old renovated Maharaja Paramhans Ji temple in Pakistan on Sunday amidst tight security, a year after the temple was demolished by a mob belonging to a radical Islamist party.
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's wife and former premier Imran Khan's wife have financial assets worth more than their husbands.
Imran has questioned the judiciary to explain the motive behind opening its doors at midnight.
Shehbaz Sharif, the joint opposition's candidate for the post of prime minister, on Sunday vowed that the new government in Pakistan want to 'move forward' and not indulge in 'politics of revenge'.
Pakistan government on Friday handed over the security of capital Islamabad to the army for three months under a controversial decision taken recently, days ahead of a major anti-government rally by Imran Khan's party.
Former Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan reiterated his allegations of a foreign conspiracy behind his ouster and said he knew that the 'match was fixed' when a no-confidence motion was moved against him.
Senator Faisal Javed, who was injured when a bullet grazed his face, said that a party worker was killed during the attack, while another was severely injured.
Pakistan's former prime minister Imran Khan on Monday appeared before the Lahore high court which granted him protective bail in a case linked to violent protests outside the election commission, amidst high drama inside the court premises where hundreds of his supporters converged to show solidarity with him.
The decision is keenly awaited as it would determine the course of Pakistan's polity and with it Sharif's. An adverse decision may result in Sharif's disqualification, or even snap elections.
Pakistan's apex court said it was ready to appoint a probe commission headed by a judge and armed with powers of the Supreme Court.
Raveesh Kumar, spokesperson in the ministry of external affairs, said India welcomed that the people of Pakistan have reposed their faith in democracy through general elections.
Khan was taken into custody by the Rangers when he appeared in court on anti-graft charges.
Shehbaz, 72, who was the consensus candidate of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), received 201 votes, 32 more than what was required to become leader of the House in the 336-member Parliament.
Imran's party has asked the FO if it would be possible to invite PM Modi.
Senior ministers of Pakistan's ruling Pakistan Muslim League - Nawaz party on Wednesday rallied in Parliament in support of embattled Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and dismissed demands for his resignation by protest leaders Imran Khan and Tahir-ul-Qadri.
The court ordered all parties to avoid taking any unconstitutional measures and adjourned the hearing until Monday.
Cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan on Friday night said he told Prime Minister Narendra Modi to expect sabotage by "vested interests", but stressed that talks between India and Pakistan should go on "uninterrupted".
'Pakistan should evolve a common narrative. The country should have common position in combating all kinds of terrorism and not fight selectively.' 'The main motive was revenge, of course. But the Nobel Prize to Malala Yousufzai also contributed to the Taliban's anger' Bestselling Pakistani author and foreign policy expert Ahmed Rashid speaks exclusively on the Peshawar school attack with Sheela Bhatt/Rediff.com.
At Imran's oath-taking ceremony, Sidhu was seated next to Masood Khan, the president of Pakistan Occupied Kashmir.
A single party will need at least 137 of the directly elected seats to be able to form the government on its own.
Pakistani police have registered yet another FIR under terrorism charges against Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chief Imran Khan and other party leaders for allegedly inciting people to attack a close aide of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's family in Punjab province.
The SC also ordered the National Accountability Court to start a corruption case against Sharif, his sons -- Hussain and Hassan -- and daughter Maryam.
Pakistan's Election Commission on Friday disqualified former prime minister Imran Khan for five years in the Toshakhana case for hiding proceeds from the sale of gifts he received from foreign leaders.
The interim government in Pakistan's Punjab province on Wednesday claimed that some '30 to 40' terrorists are hiding at the Lahore residence of former prime minister Imran Khan, giving him an ultimatum of 24 hours to hand them over or face stern action.
In Sialkot, people found five empty ballot boxes near Kashmir Park in the Cantonment area, the report said.
The three main political parties in Pakistan on Sunday intensified their efforts for the formation of a coalition government after it became clear that the coup-prone country faced a hung Parliament after general elections marred by allegations of rigging.
Legendary Pakistani philanthropist Abdul Sattar Edhi, who had dedicated his life to humanity and serving the poor, died in Karachi from renal failure. He was 92.
The Opposition parties need 172 members in the 342-member house to orchestrate the downfall of Prime Minister Khan.
Khan was ousted from power after losing a no-confidence vote in his leadership following days of high drama.
The apex court gave a month-long deadline to the government to determine the responsibility for security failure in the horrific attack in which 147 people, 132 of them children, were killed when Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants stormed the Army Public School (APS) in Peshawar.
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