ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister Imran Khan has summoned a meeting next week of the National Assembly members from his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) to devise a strategy on their resignations from the legislature, local media widely reported on Sunday, as the ex-premier mounts pressure on the government to force snap polls. 

Khan last week announced that he would seek to dissolve two provincial governments run by his party and coalition partners. Once that's done, he had said his party would also resign from the federal parliament that is run by a unity government consisting of his opposition parties. That scenario would have vacated over 60 percent of the parliamentary seats to make Khan's case for snap polls stronger.

In April, Khan also announced en masse resignations of his party's lawmakers after being driven out of power in a no-confidence vote. However, the resignations were not accepted since PTI members did not appear before the assembly speaker to certify they had willingly decided to leave their seats.

"PTI senior vice president Fawad Chaudhry confirmed that the party chairman had summoned the session [to discuss resignations]," Geo News reported. "Imran Khan would address the [members of National Assembly] via a video link from [his residence in] Zaman Park Lahore."

The meeting is scheduled to take place at the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa House in Islamabad on December 28.

The National Assembly Secretariat notified on Thursday that Speaker Raja Parvez Ashraf would summon PTI lawmakers to his chamber one by one to seek their assurance that they were resigning by choice.

The PTI also decided this weekend that Punjab Chief Minister Parvez Elahi, a key ally, would seek a vote of confidence before January 11 since he is barred from dissolving the provincial legislature under a recent court ruling without first proving his majority.

On Friday, a Pakistani high court reinstated Elahi hours after he was removed as chief minister of the country's largest province, but asked to him a trust vote from provincial legislators.

Punjab Governor Muhammad Baligh-ur-Rehman, an appointee of Khan's opponent Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, had issued an order Friday to remove Elahi, saying he acted on Elahi's failure to seek a vote of confidence, which was mandatory after the governor officially asked him to do that.

Since being ousted from office, Khan has been demanding snap polls, leading countrywide rallies to mount pressure on the government. At one of these rallies, Khan escaped an apparent assassination attempt. 

PM Shehbaz Sharif's unity government has rejected the demand, reiterating repeatedly that elections will be held as scheduled late in 2023.