Pakistan: Parliament meets to elect Khan’s replacement

Parliament session to elect a new PM begins, with opposition leader Shehbaz Sharif the favourite to win after a week-long constitutional crisis.

PTI announces resignation from the National Assembly

Qureshi said the PTI has decided to resign from the National Assembly.

“This house is going to elect a new prime minister but everyone knows he (Sharif) is being imposed and does not have the mandate of the people,” Qureshi said. “We reject this process and also announce a boycott of the election for Prime Minister,” he added.

Parliament session to elect PM begins

A session of Pakistan’s parliament to elect a new prime minister has begun, capping a tumultuous week of political drama that saw the removal of Imran Khan and a constitutional crisis narrowly averted after the country’s top court stepped in.

The leading contender is Shehbaz Sharif, an opposition legislator and brother of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

Stocks soar amid signs of political stability

The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) benchmark KSE-100 index has soared more than 1,500 points, with analysts attributing the rally to a potential end to weeks of political instability, the Dawn newspaper has reported.

The index opened at 44,444.58 and was up by 1541.57 points, or 3.47 percent, by 12:30 pm (0730 GMT), the report said.

“The market has responded positively to political stability,” financial analyst Tahir Abbas said.

Alhamdulilah ??

Stock market up by 1444 points ⬆️ ??

Dollar down to 182 from 189 ⬇️ ??#وزیرِاعظم_شہبازشریف

— Maryam Nawaz Sharif (@MaryamNSharif) April 11, 2022