Kazakh leader dissolves parliament, calls election

ALMATY: Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev dissolved the lower house of parliament on Wednesday and called a snap parliamentary election for Jan. 15-16, a presidential order said.

The election from party lists will be held on Jan. 15. Other deputies will be chosen by the People's Assembly of Kazakhstan, a consultative body loyal to Nazarbayev, the following day.

The presidential order was published in the official gazette Kazakhstanskaya Pravda and is effective from the day of publication. It follows a petition by members of parliament last week asking the president to dissolve the body.