Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan has threatened the coalition government with a vengeance if the elections in Punjab, as mandated by the Supreme Court, are not held on schedule.
"I am advising the entire country to prepare today. Be prepared." History will not forgive us if we do not stand up for [...] elections," Khan warned his supporters via video connection as the party observed "Youm-e-Tashakkur," or "Thanksgiving," to honor the Supreme Court decision ordering the elections in Punjab.
The Supreme Court's three-member bench unanimously ruled that the Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa election postponement order issued by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) was unconstitutional.
The electoral board was also instructed to hold a provincial poll on May 14 by the three-judge bench led by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial.
Originally slated to take place on April 30, the election in Punjab was postponed by the ECP until October 8 due to a recurrence of terrorist attacks, a lack of security personnel, and an unprecedented economic crisis.
Following the ruling, the election commission announced that the election will take place on May 14 and that the halted voting process would restart on April 10.
The federal cabinet and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif have all unanimously rejected the judgment and are preparing to introduce a motion in parliament opposing it.
PM Shehbaz stated that the fate of the country was being decided with unusual decisions while speaking to the leadership of the coalition parties earlier today in Islamabad.
He said that such disrespect for the Constitution and the law had never been seen before and that "such a terrible scene has never met [his] eyes."
Imran Khan, who was ousted as prime minister last April, feels that the coalition allies are "running away" from the polls because they "are well aware of their impending defeat," he added.
The former prime minister reiterated his call for holding the powerful individuals in the nation accountable for leading the country out of the economic crisis.
"I am advising the entire country to prepare today. Be prepared." History will not forgive us if we do not stand up for [...] elections," Khan warned his supporters via video connection as the party observed "Youm-e-Tashakkur," or "Thanksgiving," to honor the Supreme Court decision ordering the elections in Punjab.
The Supreme Court's three-member bench unanimously ruled that the Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa election postponement order issued by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) was unconstitutional.
The electoral board was also instructed to hold a provincial poll on May 14 by the three-judge bench led by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial.
Originally slated to take place on April 30, the election in Punjab was postponed by the ECP until October 8 due to a recurrence of terrorist attacks, a lack of security personnel, and an unprecedented economic crisis.
Following the ruling, the election commission announced that the election will take place on May 14 and that the halted voting process would restart on April 10.
The federal cabinet and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif have all unanimously rejected the judgment and are preparing to introduce a motion in parliament opposing it.
PM Shehbaz stated that the fate of the country was being decided with unusual decisions while speaking to the leadership of the coalition parties earlier today in Islamabad.
He said that such disrespect for the Constitution and the law had never been seen before and that "such a terrible scene has never met [his] eyes."
Imran Khan, who was ousted as prime minister last April, feels that the coalition allies are "running away" from the polls because they "are well aware of their impending defeat," he added.
The former prime minister reiterated his call for holding the powerful individuals in the nation accountable for leading the country out of the economic crisis.