President Arif Alvi dissolves National Assembly

President Dr Arif Alvi has dissolved the National Assembly, the 24NewsHD TV channel reported late Wednesday.

The president acted upon the advice of the prime minister under Article 58-1 of the Constitution. Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif sent the summary to dissolve the national assembly to President Arif Alvi.

Shehbaz Sharif will meet opposition leader Raja Riaz to finalise the name of the caretaker prime minister tomorrow. If they fail to reach a conclusion, the matter will be referred to a parliamentary body. The ECP will decide the matter if the MP body fails to make a decision.

Earlier in the day, PM Shehbaz Sharif addressed the last session of the National Assembly on completing its parliamentary tenure and expressed his sorrow about the punishment of PTI chief Imran Khan.

The PM also declared the May 9 incidents a rebellion against the country and the army chief. He said that there was a good debate in the cabinet before shifting the burden of petrol price hikes on the poor people.

He thanked his colleagues for choosing him as PM on April 11, 2022, for the shortest period of any government with big economic problems. Shehbaz Sharif said these problems included the burden of incompetence from the previous government and the need to increase petrol prices due to the global recession and war in Ukraine. The PM also spoke about the huge price paid in the war against terrorism and how terrorism was eradicated.