LAHORE: A session of the Punjab Assembly to elect the next chief minister — with Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) leader Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi, who is backed by Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI), and Hamza Shehbaz of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) going head to head in the race — was postponed until April 16, a notification issued by the assembly secretariat announced Tuesday.
The notification said Deputy Speaker Dost Muhammad Mazari moved the session — originally scheduled for Wednesday (tomorrow) — to the rescheduled date at 11:30 am.
Chief Minister Usman Buzdar, from the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), stepped down late last month as Prime Minister Imran Khan, nominated Elahi, the head of coalition partner PML-Q, as the new chief executive of the province.
In return, the PML-Q, which has five seats in the National Assembly pledged support for Khan against the no-trust motion.
Elahi, who served as the Punjab chief minister from 2002 to 2007, is currently the provincial assembly speaker.
With 183 members, the PTI holds a majority in the 371-seat assembly. Any party needs a simple majority — support of 186 members –​​​​​​– to form a government.
