ISLAMABAD: National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser on Wednesday wrote letters to Prime Minister Imran Khan and Leader of the Opposition Shehbaz Sharif for the appointment of the caretaker prime minister.
The speaker, in the letters, sought names of four members each from both the leaders regarding formation of the parliamentary committee for the appointment of an interim prime minister.
Earlier this week, President Arif Alvi had sent letters to PM Imran Khan and Shehbaz Sharif to seek suggestions for the appointment of caretaker prime minister. However, both the leaders failed to reach a consensus.
According to Constitution, in case the two leaders cannot reach the consensus over one name within three days, each one of them will send two names to the eight-member parliamentary committee, comprising National Assembly and Senate members, with equal representation from the government and opposition, formed by the NA speaker.
Asad Qaisar cited Article 224A (1) of the Constitution in the letter which says “In case the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition in the outgoing National Assembly do not agree on any person to be appointed as the caretaker prime minister, within three days of the dissolution of the National Assembly, they shall forward two nominees each to a Committee to be immediately constituted by the Speaker of the National Assembly, comprising eight members of the outgoing National Assembly, or the Senate, or both, having equal representation from the Treasury and the Opposition, to be nominated by the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition, respectively.”
PM Imran Khan and Shehbaz Sharif will now nominate four members each from from the treasury and the the opposition benches respectively. According to Constitution, the committee thus constituted, shall finalize the name of the caretaker prime minister within three days of the referral of the matter to it.
In case of inability of the committee to decide the matter in the aforesaid period, the names of the nominees shall be referred to the Election Commission of Pakistan for final decision within two days.
