PTI mulls pushing PM Shehbaz to take trust vote

• Imran Khan summons key party session in Zaman Park today.
• PTI waiting for MQM-P's decision on LG polls before calling for VoC.
• KP CM to move summary for assembly dissolution today: sources.

In its next move on the chessboard of national politics, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) may checkmate the government by asking Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to take a vote of confidence from the parliament if the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) decides to part ways with the ruling coalition in the centre, sources told Geo News.

PTI Chairman Imran Khan on Saturday summoned a meeting of the party's central leadership to discuss key issues such as the vote of confidence in the NA, the dissolution of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Assembly, and the formulation of a caretaker government in Punjab.

Sources said the former premier is waiting for MQM-P's decision over their reservations regarding the local government polls in Karachi and Hyderabad, before calling on the PM to attain a vote of confidence.

MQM-P had threatened to quit the federal government if their reservations regarding delimitations in Karachi and Hyderabad were not addressed ahead of the LG polls. 

Sources added that the dissolution of the KP Assembly is also expected to be finalised after CM KP Mehmood Khan's meeting with the PTI chief at Zaman Park today. The advice to dissolve the KP is likely to be forwarded to Governor KP Haji Ghulam Ali today, they added.

Meanwhile, the Punjab Assembly will stand dissolved at 10:11 pm tonight, regardless of the governor's decision to sign the summary or not, sources said.

The Punjab CM forwarded the summary of dissolution at 10:10 pm Thursday, and as per the constitution, the assembly would be dissolved within 48 hours regardless of the governor's decision.

The CM forwarded the summary after attaining a vote of confidence from the assembly on Wednesday night.

PTI Senior Vice President announced Thursday that, "Elahi has signed the summary and the advice has been sent to Punjab Governor [Baligh Ur Rehman] and if he does not sign on it in the next 48 hours, then in line with the Constitution, the assembly will stand dissolved in the next 48 hours."

He told media representatives that a letter would be written to the Leader of the Opposition in the Punjab Assembly Hamza Shahbaz for the formation of a caretaker government.