Pakistan: Raja Pervaiz Ashraf elected new National Assembly Speaker

The seat fell vacant on April 3 after the resignation of Asad Qaiser who, hours before the Supreme Court's deadline for the vote of no-confidence motion was to expire, addressed the assembly to announce the decision, reported The Express Tribune.

The former speaker said that the then-cabinet had shared the alleged "threat letter" with him and asked the lawmakers to stand for the country's sovereignty.

"I can no longer remain on the seat of the speaker and I resign," Qaiser had said. He also said that he accepts the Supreme Court's decision and asked former speaker Ayaz Sadiq to run the session.

Meanwhile, Qasim Suri resigned as the Deputy Speaker of the Pakistan National Assembly, less than an hour before the voting on the no-confidence motion against him started.

Confirming the news, Suri shared a copy of his resignation on Twitter and said that his decision signified his association with his party, Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI), and democracy, Dawn newspaper reported.

"We will never compromise on Pakistan's sovereignty and integrity. We will fight for the country's interests and independence. We will go to any length to protect Pakistan," he added.

Qasim Suri faced severe criticism over his decision on April 3 ruling to dismiss a no-confidence motion against former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his decision to defer the session scheduled for the NA speaker's election from April 16 to April 22 as a delaying tactic, reported Dawn newspaper.

On April 9, Murtaza Javed Abbasi of the Pakistan Muslim League-N submitted a resolution of the no-confidence motion against Suri, saying he had "repeatedly violated the rules, parliamentary practices, democratic norms and traditions, and even Constitutional provisions and when presiding over the House, failed to conduct proceedings in an orderly manner to enable productive debate on issues of public importance". (ANI)