Islamabad ( CNN ) -- The second-largest party in Pakistan 's ruling coalition quit the government Sunday over fuel price increases and other complaints , leaving the country with a minority government . Sunday 's announcement by the Muttahida Qaumi Movement that its 25 members would join the opposition comes after several previous threats to quit the government . But Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said the ruling Pakistan People 's Party would be able to function without a majority in the National Assembly , which chooses the prime minister . `` Just because one party pulls out does not mean that the government will fall or come apart , '' Gilani told reporters . The MQM is one of the largest and most liberal parties in Pakistan , with its stronghold in the southern city of Karachi . Its exit follows December 's withdrawal of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazal ur Rehman , a leading religious party . Muhammad Anwar , a senior coordinator for the MQM , told CNN that the last straw for the party were the fuel price increases that took effect Saturday . Pakistan 's government raised gasoline prices by 9.2 % and increased kerosene by nearly 6 % , blaming higher crude oil costs for the move . Anwar also said the government had failed to crack down on `` rampant '' corruption and maintain law and order -- particularly in Karachi and the surrounding southern province of Sindh . Businessmen in Karachi `` are virtually hostage '' to extortion and kidnapping rings , he said . And MQM leader Faisal Sabzwari said Sunday that the PPP-led government also has imposed unfair taxes on the poor and allowed an energy crisis to fester . The party pulled its two cabinet ministers in the federal government last week , a move MQM leaders said was a warning to the government . The decision leaves the PPP-led government that came to power in 2008 with 147 seats in the 342-seat National Assembly , where members serve up to five-year terms . Anwar said the MQM does n't want the government to fail , but `` The government is failing itself by its own deeds . '' CNN 's Aliza Kassim and journalist Nasir Habib contributed to this report .
'The government is failing itself , ' MQM official says . The second-largest party in Pakistan 's government quits . - May 14 : A suicide bomber kills at least 15 people and injures more than 100 others outside a police station in the city of Lahore.