Islamabad: Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan won the vote of confidence in the National Assembly on Saturday amid a boycott call by the Opposition parties.
Prime Minister Khan managed to secure 178 votes in the 342-member lower house of Parliament during a special session convened on the directives of President Arif Alvi. A total of 172 votes was needed for a simple majority.
The 68-year-old cricketer-turned politician had decided to take a vote of confidence in the lower house of Parliament after his party suffered an embarrassing defeat in the hotly-contested Senate elections.
The Opposition, Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) comprising 11 parties, boycott the voting process demanding that the Prime Minister should resign after the poll debacle.
The ruling coalition had 181 members but after the resignation of one of its lawmakers, Faisal Vowda, its strength was reduced to 180. The ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) had 157 members in the NA but following the resignation of Vowda, it now has 156 members.
The Opposition coalition has 160 members in the House. One seat was vacant.
The ruling party’s allies include seven from Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), five each from the Pakistan Muslim League-Q (PML-Q) and the Balochistan Awami Party (BAP), three from the Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) and one each from the AML and the JWP.
