The removal of Imran Khan as prime minister has set Pakistan on an uncertain political path, with his supporters taking to the streets in protest as the opposition prepares to install his replacement, Aljazeera reports.
Khan was brought down early on Sunday morning after 174 legislators in the 342-seat National Assembly – some belonging to his party and coalition – voted in a no-confidence motion moved by the opposition to depose him, two more than the required simple majority.
Khan is the first Pakistani prime minister to be thrown out of office by a no-confidence vote during a 13-hour parliamentary session that included repeated delays and lengthy speeches by legislators from his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party.
On Sunday night, tens of thousands of Khan supporters marched in cities across Pakistan, waving large party flags and shouting slogans, after the end of the daily dawn-to-dusk fast during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
The youth, who make up the backbone of Khan’s supporters, dominated the crowds.
In the southern Arabian Sea port city of Karachi, more than 20,000 people shouted slogans promising Khan’s return to power.
In capital Islamabad, the lights from thousands of supporters lit up the night sky as Khan made his way through the crowd atop a brightly coloured truck.
“Never have such crowds come out so spontaneously and in such numbers in our history,” Khan posted on his Twitter account on Sunday night.
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