Islamabad | Jagran News Desk: The Pakistan National Assembly on Monday witnessed the tabling of a motion of no-confidence by the opposition parties against Prime Minister Imran Khan with a total of 161 votes in favour. However, shortly after the opposition parties tabled the motion, the Speaker adjourned the House proceedings till March 31 further delaying the debate on the resolution.

The resolution was tabled by the Leader of Opposition and PML-N President, Shahbaz Sharif. During the session, Deputy NA Speaker Qasim Suri asked the members of the Parliament, who are in favour of the motion, to stand up so that their numbers could be counted. As per the Constitution, 20 per cent of the MNAs present in the assembly must show support for the motion.

Following the counting of the members who stood up in favour of the motion, the Deputy Speaker approved a discussion on the no-confidence motion, adding that it will take place on Thursday, March 31. However, the voting on the resolution is expected to take place between April 1 and April 4.

Number Game in Pakistan Assembly:

The Pakistani National Assembly has a total strength of 342 members, with the majority mark being 172. The PTI led coalition was formed with the support of 179 members, with Imran Khan's PTI having 155 members, and four major allies Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P), Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q), Balochistan Awami Party (BAP) and Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) having seven, five, five and three members respectively. However, the support of 179 members was reduced to 178 on Sunday after the Balochistan-based Jamhoori Watan Party, which has one member in Parliament, withdrew from the alliance.

Does Imran Khan have the numbers to survive the no-trust vote?

Despite strong calls against him even by his own party's -- PTI -- lawmakers, Imran Khan is trying to get the support of three PTI allies, the PML-Q, the Balochistan Awami Party (BAP), and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan. The three parties have 17 MNAs in the assembly and have said that they are undecided whether to support Khan or not.

PML-Q, on Sunday, sought more time for the consultation before coming to any decision in the no-confidence motion against Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan-led government, reported ANI. After a meeting between Pakistan Muslim League- Nawaz (PML-N) delegation with PML-Q chief Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, Dawn quoted Tariq Bashir Cheema, PML-Q member and Pakistan Housing and Work Minister, saying "we will try to come out with our decision in a day or two."

Meanwhile, the MQM, which has its own issues with PTI, is also being wooed by Imran Khan. The Imran Khan-led government has offered the MQM governorship of Sindh in order to get their support during the voting on the no-confidence motion in the National Assembly.

However, wooing the allies won't help the cricketer-turned-politician as he also has to bring back a dozen members of his own party who have rebelled against him and have declared to vote against him. Apart from them, Imran Khan also need the support of the Pakistan Army and the ISI, which was instrumental in putting him in power in 2018. Adding to his woes, the Army and ISI have signalled that they no longer want Imran Khan in power.

Other options left for Imran Khan:

To survive the no-confidence motion, Imran Khan has some other options left for him. Among them, Imran could dissolve the Pakistan government and call for fresh elections. Some of his ministers have also been advising him to dissolve the government. However, the PTI has so far said nothing about this option.