Pakistan: Governor Tessori dissolves Sindh Assembly on CM Shah’s advice

Islamabad [Pakistan], August 12 (ANI): The Sindh Assembly in Pakistan has been dissolved on Friday as the province’s Governor Kamran Tessori signed and gave approval to Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah’s summary for the dissolution of the provincial legislature, Pakistan-based Dawn reported. 

The dissolution of the Sindh Assembly comes just days before the completion of the Sindh Assembly’s five-year tenure, which began on August 13, 2018. Earlier this week, the Pakistan National Assembly was also dissolved before the completion of its term.

In a notification issued by the government, Sindh Governor Kamran Tessori said, “As advised by the chief minister and in exercise of powers conferred upon me under clause (1) of Article 112 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, and other provisions enabling me in this behalf, I, Muhammad Kamran Khan Tessori, governor of Sindh, hereby dissolve the Provincial Assembly of Sindh on Friday, the 11th day of August, at 9 pm.”

On Thursday, the opposition Grand Democratic Alliance and Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan announced that they have reached a consensus over their candidates for the office of the caretaker chief minister, according to Dawn. However, they said that they would make a formal announcement regarding the candidates after the dissolution of the Sindh Assembly.

Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) leader Sardar Rahim said that both the opposition parties have finalized their names. However, it was not appropriate to announce them until the appointment of Pakistan’s caretaker PM and the dissolution of the Sindh Assembly. The retired bureaucrats Shoaib Siddiqui, Younus Dagha, and senior politician Safdar Abbasi were among the candidates shortlisted by the GDA and MQM-P for the position of caretaker Chief Minister, Dawn reported citing sources.

According to sources, these names will be given to the Leader of the Opposition in the Sindh Assembly Rana Ansar. He will then present these names to Murad Ali Shah. Until the caretaker CM is finalized, Murad will remain Sindh’s Chief Minister, Dawn reported. 

While addressing the last provincial cabinet session on Friday, outgoing Sindh CM Murad said he, his cabinet members, and all the PPP MPAs were going “back to the people with dignity and respect.”

He recalled that at the beginning of the term in 2018, the then-federal government led by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) was not ready to cooperate and attempted to destabilize the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) government in Sindh, according to Dawn report. 

He said, “But under the guidance of Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, we kept serving our people steadfastly.” Murad Ali Shah said that the province was still tackling the COVID-19 pandemic when the disastrous floods of 2022 swept the majority of the regions of Sindh.

Sindh CM said, “I had almost lost hope to drain out such a deluge of the water but the cabinet members, party workers, and the leadership supported me and finally the water was disposed of, and wheat crops were sown,” Dawn reported. He stated that all party leadership, ministers, advisors, special assistants, coordinators, MPAs and party workers “stood shoulder-by-shoulder” with the flood-impacted people.