Everything you need to Know About No-Confidence Motion

 Heard recently about No-confidence or No-trust vote in Pakistan Parliament. Well! It is in the News, wants to know its meaning and why major news portals are covering it.

In democratic countries, governments are formed by public votes. Once any political party gets a majority of votes, they form their government to rule the nation.

Rule the entire nation is not simple; any political party that wins a national election needs to maintain the majority throughout its ruling term.

What is No-confidence motion? 

A political party needs to win a majority of seats to get into power and remain or rule the nation throughout its term; they need to maintain the majority's support.

The ruling party needs to prove its strength in a floor test to remain in power, which is taken to know the legislature's confidence in government.

Any member of parliament can move a no-confidence motion vote if he/she thinks that the ruling party lacks a majority.

The member initiating a no-confidence motion does not require to give the reason for the same. If that motion is accepted in the parliament, the ruling party would be required to prove its majority to remain in power.

What is the process?

Any opposition member in Lok Sabha can move a no-confidence motion; Rajya Sabha members cannot initiate this process. 

The process for moving a no-confidence motion is specified by Rule 198 of the Rules of Procedure and conduct of Lok Sabha.

The member who initiates the process must submit a written notice of the motion to the Speaker before 10 am, which will be read out by the Speaker in the parliament.

If a motion is submitted after 10 am, it is deemed as received on the next day when the house sits.

To get the motion activated, the support/acceptance of a minimum of 50 members of the parliament would be required. After that, the Speaker will announce the date for the discussion of the motion, which shall fall within 10 days from the date of motion acceptance.

If not, then the motion will not occur, and the member who initiated the process will be informed of the same.

In case all the requirements are fulfilled, and a motion takes place, then the current government would be required to prove its majority. If failed, then the government has to resign on the same date.

No-confidence vote in Pakistan 

According to the constitution of Pakistan, A Prime Minister is elected through a majority of the Lower House of Pakistan's National Assembly.

In total, 342 members are there in the house. To become Prime Minister of Pakistan, an eligible candidate shall receive 172 votes from legislators.

The No-confidence motion means the same in both countries, i.e., India and Pakistan.

In Pakistan, 172 votes from legislators are required to become a Prime Minister. The exact number of people need to vote against the current government to demolish their rule.

A vote of fewer than 172 votes can save the government from a knock-out.

Why is it in the News?

Recently, the opposition groups in Pakistan filed a No-confidence vote motion against Imran Khan, and they successfully managed to fulfill all the requirements.

In response, Imran Khan resigned from the Prime Minister's post. Shehbaz Sharif became the 23rd Prime Minister of Pakistan on 11th April 2022.

Because of this Political activity, major news channels are covering this topic.