Pakistan government sacks Punjab province Governor

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government on Sunday removed Governor of Punjab Mohammad Chaudhry Sarwar ahead of the voting on the no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Imran Khan in the National Assembly, as well as of the election of a new provincial Chief Minister, The Express Tribune reported.

The decision to sack Sarwar was announced by Federal Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry in a tweet early Sunday morning.

Fawad said a new Punjab Governor will be announced later, adding: "Till then, the deputy speaker will perform duties as acting governor as per the Constitution."

Sources said Sarwar was removed on the complaint of Punjab Assembly Speaker Pervaiz Elahi.

Elahi had accused Sarwar of siding with the Aleem Khan group which is supporting the opposition PML-N's Hamza Shehbaz against the Speaker in the election of the the Punjab Chief Minister.

The Punjab Assembly will elect a new Chief Minister on Sunday with Elahi and Hamza Shehbaz being the two aspirants for the coveted post.

Both also appeared optimistic during the session and claimed to have the required number of lawmakers on their respective sides.

A day earlier, Hamza Shehbaz had said that the PML-N had more than the required number to become successful in its quest for the next chief executive of Pakistan's most populous province and termed the current state of affairs in Punjab a result of the ruling party's policies.

Answering another query about the number game in the provincial assembly to ensure his election as chief minister, Elahi had stated that everything was fine, The Express Tribune reported.