Hamza Shehbaz: Imran announces to challenge LHC verdict in Supreme Court

Islamabad: Former prime minister and PTI Chairman Imran Khan Thursday announced the party would move the Supreme Court of Pakistan tomorrow after the Lahore High Court wrapped up the case against Hamza Shahbaz's election as Punjab's chief minister.

Speaking at a seminar in the federal capital, Khan questioned how could Hamza remain the chief minister when the court had agreed that the electoral process through which he came into power was “flawed”.

The LHC today ordered the recounting of the votes of the Punjab chief minister's election, excluding the votes of 25 PTI dissidents, while announcing the verdict on the PTI's pleas challenging Hamza's election as the chief minister.

The court's verdict says Hamza will continue to hold the office of the chief minister if he retains the majority of votes even after excluding the dissidents' votes.

Punjab Assembly Speaker Pervaiz Elahi confirmed that they [PTI and PML-Q] had still not decided to boycott the elections, categorically terming all news circulating regarding the boycott “fake and baseless.”

There are reports that 11 PTI members are out of the country.

About the alleged “foreign conspiracy”, the PTI leader said he wished that the Supreme Court forms a judicial commission, adding that the PTI has "all data regarding who visited which embassy."

“If a judicial inquiry is conducted, the truth will be unveiled,” he said, lamenting that how can anyone insult the prime minister of 220 million people.

The former premier disclosed that President Arif Alvi had sent the cypher to the Supreme Court for an inquiry, adding that beneficiaries of the "regime change do not want an inquiry to be held."

Commenting over the rising inflation in the country, Khan said he, along with ex-finance minister Shaukat Tarin, had warned the “neutrals” that if the economy collapsed, the country would not be able to recover.

“Today, inflation has reached sky-high levels, while the economy has collapsed,” the PTI stalwart said.