Daily Times

Advocate Supreme Court Hafiz Ahsaan Ahmad Khokhar has said that as per Article 91(2) of the Constitution, the National Assembly shall meet on the twenty-first day following the day on which a general election to the Assembly was held.

After the election of the Speaker and the Deputy Speaker, the National Assembly shall elect without debate one of its Muslim members to be the Prime Minister, and as per article 91 (4) of the Constitution the Prime Minister shall be elected by the votes of the majority of the total membership of the National Assembly.

According to the Constitutional experts as per Article 91(7) of the Constitution the Prime Minister shall hold office during the pleasure of the President, and the Constitution has also provided a prerogative to the President that if he is satisfied that the Prime Minister does not command the confidence of the majority of the members of the National Assembly, he can summon the National Assembly and require the Prime Minister to obtain a vote of confidence from the Assembly within reasonable time.

According to Hafiz Ahsaan Ahmad Khokhar, as per clause (2) of Article 48 of the Constitution, the President can dissolve the National Assembly in his discretion where, no other member of the National Assembly can command the confidence of the majority of the members of the National Assembly in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution both in situation of vote of no confidence succeeded under article 95 of the Constitution against the Prime Minister or the Prime Minister fails to get the vote of trust as required by President under article 91(7) of the Constitution.

Khokhar said the provision provided in article 91(4) of the Constitution would not available both in situation if vote of no confidence has succeeded against the Prime Minister or the Prime Minister fails to get the confidence or command of the majority of members of National Assembly in view of article 91(7) of the Constitution as so advised by President that, if no member secures such majority in the first poll for becoming Prime Minister, a second poll shall be held between the members who secure the two highest numbers of votes in the first poll and the member who secures a majority of votes of the members present and voting shall be declared to have been elected as Prime Minister, and the Constitution has provided further that, if the number of votes secured by two or more members securing the highest number of votes is equal, further poll shall be held between them until one of them secures a majority of votes of the members present and voting.

The legal expert further stated that in case a Prime Minister fails to get and does not command the confidence of the majority of the members of the National Assembly, which is in present strength become 173 of the total membership for showing as majority of the House in view of article 91(7) of the Constitution, and thereafter, further if no other member is in a position to get the command of majority of the members of the National Assembly for becoming the Prime Minister during the session especially summoned by the President for the election of a new Prime Minister, then consequently the National Assembly would be dissolved by the President under article 58(2) of the Constitution, and the general election would be held under the umbrella of Caretaker government.