Imran Khan, the
prime minister of Pakistan, faces one of the biggest challenges to his
political career on Saturday. At the time of writing this, the Pakistan National
Assembly has convened for a no-confidence motion vote on Khan. The vote on the
no-confidence motion is the fourth item on agenda. The Opposition benches are
full while treasure benches see sparse attendance.

Political
observers in Pakistan don’t see great hope for Imran. The numbers don’t favour
the founder of Tehreek-e-Insaaf. The opposition claims more than 172 members
out of 342 will be voting against Khan.

Upon realising
that he might lose power, Khan has stepped up the offensive calling the
opposition’s efforts a “foreign conspiracy”. On Friday night, Khan called upon
the people of Pakistan to hit the streets as the no-trust vote is underway and
peacefully protest an “imported government”.

Imran Khan’s
charges of a foreign conspiracy stem from his suspicion of the United States.
Khan believes the US is attempting a regime change in Pakistan for his
government’s ‘neutral’ position on matters such as the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Meanwhile, Shehbaz
Sharif, leader of Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) and the leader of the opposition,
has already started celebrating Imran’s fall from grace. On Thursday, after the
Supreme Court said that a no-trust vote was legitimate, Sharif, brother of
Nawaz Sharif and the man likely to take Imran’s place according to some media
reports, said the apex court’s decision had made Pakistan’s future bright.

While Imran’s fate
is likely to be sealed following the no-trust vote, the man who led Pakistan to
World Cup glory and later wed himself to the cause of Islamic democracy has
already called for the need for fresh elections. If Imran Khan loses the
no-trust vote, he will not be the first Pakistan PM to be ousted before the end
of their term but will certainly be the first to be removed from office through
a no-confidence motion. Even that, in some ways, will be a win for Pakistani
democracy, for a country plagued by regular military coups.