<p>Pakistan's parliament will convene on Saturday to vote on removing Imran Khan as prime minister, an official notice said on Friday, potentially cutting short his term as leader.</p>.<p>The country's top court ruled late on Thursday that Khan must face the no-confidence vote, which he is widely expected to lose, meaning he would be ousted from office.</p>.<p>The lower house of parliament has been convened for a session on Saturday at 10:30 a.m. (0530 GMT), the speaker's office said in an order paper. The vote, brought by the opposition leader Shehbaz Sharif, is the fourth point on the agenda.</p>.<p>Khan, a former cricket star who took office in 2018, was due to address the nation later on Friday. He said after Thursday's ruling that "My message to our nation is I have always and will continue to fight for (Pakistan) till the last ball".</p>.<p><strong>Read | <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/international/world-news-politics/pakistan-sc-strikes-down-deputy-speakers-decision-to-reject-no-trust-motion-against-pm-khan-1098592.html" target="_blank">Imran exit closer as top court takes him to task</a></strong></p>.<p>A member of Khan's government denounced the Supreme Court's decision to quash the prime minister's effort to block the no-confidence vote.</p>.<p>"A judicial coup happened last night ... ending parliamentary supremacy!" Minister for Human Rights Shireen Mazari said on Twitter.</p>.<p>In its ruling, the Supreme Court said Khan had acted unconstitutionally in blocking the no-confidence vote when it was due to take place last Sunday, after which he dissolved parliament and called an election.</p>.<p>The ruling was the latest twist in a crisis that has threatened political and economic stability in the country of 220 million people, where the military has ruled for half its history.</p>.<p>Khan, who opposed the US-led intervention in Afghanistan and has developed relations with Russia since he became prime minister, has accused the United States of supporting a plot to oust him. Washington has dismissed the accusation.</p>.<p>If he loses the no-confidence vote, the opposition will put forward a candidate for prime minister.</p>.<p>Shehbaz Sharif, the younger brother of three-time former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, said after the court ruling that the opposition had nominated him to take over should Khan be ousted.</p>.<p><strong>Ending uncertainty?</strong></p>.<p>The rupee currency hit all-time lows on Thursday and foreign exchange reserves tumbled.</p>.<p>Pakistan's central bank hiked its benchmark interest rate by 250 basis points on Thursday, the largest such move since 1996.</p>.<p>On Friday, markets opened higher on investor hopes the crisis might be easing. The Pakistan Stock Exchange was up 680 points, or 1.5%, and the rupee had rebounded from historic lows.</p>.<p>"The court decision will end political uncertainty and constitutional crisis to a large extent. This will help restore come confidence in the markets," Muhammad Sohail of Karachi-based Topline Securities told Reuters.</p>.<p>"However economic challenges remain and it will be interesting to see how new set-up takes bold steps to put things in order," he added.</p>.<p>Pakistan's sovereign dollar bonds stumbled again on Friday, however.</p>.<p>The 2029 issue dropped more than 1 cent to 88.6 cents on the dollar while shorter-dated issues traded around the mid-70s cents, Tradeweb data showed. The country's bonds had traded close to par of 100 cents at the start of the year.</p>.<p>The opposition has said it wants early elections but only after delivering Khan a political defeat and passing legislation that it says is needed to ensure the next polls are free and fair.</p>.<p>The election commission has said the earliest it can hold elections is in October, which means any new government will have to deal with pressing economic issues before that.</p>.<p><strong>Watch latest videos by DH here:</strong></p>
<p>Pakistan's parliament will convene on Saturday to vote on removing Imran Khan as prime minister, an official notice said on Friday, potentially cutting short his term as leader.</p>.<p>The country's top court ruled late on Thursday that Khan must face the no-confidence vote, which he is widely expected to lose, meaning he would be ousted from office.</p>.<p>The lower house of parliament has been convened for a session on Saturday at 10:30 a.m. (0530 GMT), the speaker's office said in an order paper. The vote, brought by the opposition leader Shehbaz Sharif, is the fourth point on the agenda.</p>.<p>Khan, a former cricket star who took office in 2018, was due to address the nation later on Friday. He said after Thursday's ruling that "My message to our nation is I have always and will continue to fight for (Pakistan) till the last ball".</p>.<p><strong>Read | <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/international/world-news-politics/pakistan-sc-strikes-down-deputy-speakers-decision-to-reject-no-trust-motion-against-pm-khan-1098592.html" target="_blank">Imran exit closer as top court takes him to task</a></strong></p>.<p>A member of Khan's government denounced the Supreme Court's decision to quash the prime minister's effort to block the no-confidence vote.</p>.<p>"A judicial coup happened last night ... ending parliamentary supremacy!" Minister for Human Rights Shireen Mazari said on Twitter.</p>.<p>In its ruling, the Supreme Court said Khan had acted unconstitutionally in blocking the no-confidence vote when it was due to take place last Sunday, after which he dissolved parliament and called an election.</p>.<p>The ruling was the latest twist in a crisis that has threatened political and economic stability in the country of 220 million people, where the military has ruled for half its history.</p>.<p>Khan, who opposed the US-led intervention in Afghanistan and has developed relations with Russia since he became prime minister, has accused the United States of supporting a plot to oust him. Washington has dismissed the accusation.</p>.<p>If he loses the no-confidence vote, the opposition will put forward a candidate for prime minister.</p>.<p>Shehbaz Sharif, the younger brother of three-time former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, said after the court ruling that the opposition had nominated him to take over should Khan be ousted.</p>.<p><strong>Ending uncertainty?</strong></p>.<p>The rupee currency hit all-time lows on Thursday and foreign exchange reserves tumbled.</p>.<p>Pakistan's central bank hiked its benchmark interest rate by 250 basis points on Thursday, the largest such move since 1996.</p>.<p>On Friday, markets opened higher on investor hopes the crisis might be easing. The Pakistan Stock Exchange was up 680 points, or 1.5%, and the rupee had rebounded from historic lows.</p>.<p>"The court decision will end political uncertainty and constitutional crisis to a large extent. This will help restore come confidence in the markets," Muhammad Sohail of Karachi-based Topline Securities told Reuters.</p>.<p>"However economic challenges remain and it will be interesting to see how new set-up takes bold steps to put things in order," he added.</p>.<p>Pakistan's sovereign dollar bonds stumbled again on Friday, however.</p>.<p>The 2029 issue dropped more than 1 cent to 88.6 cents on the dollar while shorter-dated issues traded around the mid-70s cents, Tradeweb data showed. The country's bonds had traded close to par of 100 cents at the start of the year.</p>.<p>The opposition has said it wants early elections but only after delivering Khan a political defeat and passing legislation that it says is needed to ensure the next polls are free and fair.</p>.<p>The election commission has said the earliest it can hold elections is in October, which means any new government will have to deal with pressing economic issues before that.</p>.<p><strong>Watch latest videos by DH here:</strong></p>