National Assembly Dissolved on Prime Minister’s Advice: President Takes Action Under Constitutional Framework
President Arif Alvi has taken the step of dissolving the National Assembly, acting upon the recommendation put forth by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. This decision, made under Article 58 (1) of the Constitution, also led to the dissolution of the federal cabinet and government.
On August 12, the Prime Minister endorsed the proposal for the National Assembly’s dissolution and forwarded it to the President for his endorsement. In line with this, the President officially dissolved the National Assembly. However, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will continue to hold his position until the appointment of a caretaker Prime Minister.
The process of appointing a Caretaker Prime Minister will follow the guidelines of Article 224A of the Constitution. The Prime Minister and the opposition leader will engage in consultations to determine the suitable candidate for this role. They will have a three-day window to finalize their selection. In the event that an agreement isn’t reached within this time frame, the matter will be referred to the parliamentary committee. Each side will present their respective nominees to the speaker’s parliamentary committee, which will conclude the selection process within three days.
Should the parliamentary committee also fail to settle on a caretaker Prime Minister, the responsibility will shift to the election commission. Within two days, the election commission will declare the name of the caretaker Prime Minister.
Subsequent to the dissolution of the Assembly, the Election Commission will promptly announce the scheduled date for elections, in accordance with Article 224-1. As per constitutional requirements, if the Assembly is dissolved prior to its term’s completion, general elections must be conducted within 90 days.
Once the general elections have been conducted, the Election Commission will adhere to the constitutional mandate and declare the election results within a span of 14 days.
