Sindh Governor Kamran Tessori approved the dissolution of the Sindh Provincial Assembly late Friday night.
The move comes following a summary submitted by Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah and the announcement for dissolution of the assembly was made by the governor himself on his official Twitter account.
Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab, confirming the dissolution, shared on X – formerly known as Twitter – that the governor had given his assent to the dissolution on the advice of the chief minister.
The formal notification regarding the dissolution is expected to be issued shortly.
The provincial assembly’s first session convened on August 13, 2018, and its constitutionally mandated five-year term was set to conclude on August 12, 2023 – tomorrow.
As per the Constitution, the dissolution of the provincial assembly triggers the establishment of a caretaker government, regardless of the governor’s endorsement of the chief minister’s summary.
The dissolution process, as outlined in Article 224 of the Constitution, stipulates that the Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah must communicate with the leader of the opposition within 48 hours of the assembly’s dissolution. This correspondence is meant to yield three names for the position of caretaker chief minister from both sides.
Should an impasse arise between the chief minister and the leader of the opposition over these nominees, a committee consisting of six members from both the treasury and opposition benches will be formed.
Each side will put forth two nominees for consideration. This committee then has three days to reach a consensus on a single name.
In the event that a consensus remains elusive, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) will be tasked with making the final decision from the submitted nominees within two days.
The selected caretaker chief minister will assume office until a new government is formed, and they will have the authority to appoint their own cabinet members.
Following the installation of the caretaker chief minister, the Election Commission of Pakistan is constitutionally obligated to conduct general elections in the province within 90 days.
The electoral body has the flexibility to hold elections within a window of 22 to 45 days, allowing time for the scrutiny of candidate nomination papers and a campaign period of approximately 29 to 30 days.
This recent development comes in the wake of the National Assembly’s dissolution on August 9, after President Dr. Arif Alvi approved Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s summary for the premature dissolution under Article 58-1 of the Constitution.
The President’s Office released an official statement in this regard.
