ISLAMABAD   -  PTI chairman Imran Khan on Tuesday urged the Supreme Court of Pakistan to take notice of the constitutional crisis in Punjab ‘fuelled by the federal government’ as a result of removal of provincial Governor Omar Sarfraz Cheema.

These remarks of former prime minister Imran Khan came a day after the federal government issued notification of removal of Punjab Governor Omar Cheema. The Cabinet Division had issued the notification after President Dr Arif Alvi rejected Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s advice to remove the governor from his position.

Khan condemned what he described as “blatant violation” of the Constitution, and said that legal violation has been committed in Punjab by sacking the province's governor, said a statement issued by the PTI’s central media department.

He demanded the apex court to take “immediate notice of the blatant violation of the Constitution and the law in Punjab.” He called the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) led ruling coalition as “imported puppets”, and accused them of stirring up constitutional anarchy and chaos in Punjab. First a “criminal puppet” was imposed on the province as chief minister through a ghost election, he said, adding, “Now, keeping all constitutional requirements aside, the office of the president has been insulted.”

Khan said that an embarrassing attempt has been made to remove Governor Punjab Cheema because of his insistence to protect the Constitution. Khan urged the Supreme Court to take suo motu notice of the situation, keeping in view its sensitivity.