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Imran Ahmed Khan Niazi[a] (born 5 October 1952) is a Pakistani politician and former cricketer who served as the 22nd prime minister of Pakistan from August 2018 until April 2022. He is the founder and former chairman of the political party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) from 1996 to 2023. He was the captain of the Pakistan national cricket team throughout the 1980s and early 1990s.
As prime minister, Khan addressed a balance of payments crisis with bailouts from the IMF. He presided over a shrinking current account deficit, and limited defence spending to curtail the fiscal deficit, leading to some general economic growth. He enacted policies that increased tax collection and investment as well as advocated for transforming Pakistan into a welfare state. His government committed to a renewable energy transition, launched Ehsaas Programme and the Plant for Pakistan initiative, and expanded the protected areas of Pakistan. He presided over the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused economic turmoil and rising inflation in the country, threatening his political position.
In early 2022, in what became known as Lettergate, Khan alleged that the United States encouraged his removal from office. In April, during the ensuing constitutional crisis, Khan became the first Pakistani prime minister to be removed from office through a no-confidence motion. In August, he was charged under anti-terror laws after accusing the police and judiciary of detaining and torturing an aide. In October, Khan was disqualified by the Election Commission of Pakistan from taking office for the current term of the National Assembly of Pakistan, regarding the Toshakhana reference case. In November, he survived an assassination attempt during a political rally in Wazirabad, Punjab.
On 9 May 2023, Khan was arrested on corruption charges at the Islamabad High Court by paramilitary troops who smashed their way into the courthouse. Protests broke out throughout Pakistan, which led to the killings of at least 12 of Khan's supporters,[4] the arrest of thousands, and the ransacking of military installations. After his release, he blamed the Chief of Army StaffAsim Munir for his arrest. He was sentenced to a three-year jail term on 5 August 2023 after being found guilty of misusing his premiership to buy and sell gifts in state possession that were received during diplomatic visits abroad.[5][6] On 29 August 2023, a Pakistani appeals court suspended Khan's three-year prison term and granted him bail,[7][8][9] but he remained incarcerated in connection with the Lettergate diplomatic cypher, for which he was accused of leaking state secrets and violating the Official Secrets Act.[10][11] On 30 January 2024, a special court sentenced Khan to 10 years in prison after finding him guilty of those charges.[12][13] On 3 February, Khan and his wife were convicted and sentenced to an additional seven years in prison for a breach of the Islamic marriage laws. The decision of the special court relating to the diplomatic cable was overturned by the Islamabad High Court on 3 June 2024. Khan's conviction for a breach of the marriage laws was overturned on appeal on 13 July 2024. Khan remained in prison and was then arrested on charges related to the 2023 riots.
Khan was born in Lahore on 5 October 1952.[14] Though some sources state he was born on 25 November 1952,[15][16][17][18] Khan has said that this mistake stemmed from that date being written erroneously on his passport.[19] He is the only son of Ikramullah Khan Niazi, a civil engineer, and his wife Shaukat Khanum, and has four sisters.[20]Long settled in Mianwali in northwestern Punjab, his paternal family are of Pashtun descent and belong to the Niazi tribe,[21][22] and one of his ancestors, Haibat Khan Niazi, in the 16th century, "was one of Sher Shah Suri's leading generals, as well as being the governor of Punjab."[23][24] Khan's maternal family has produced a number of cricketers, including those who have represented Pakistan,[20] such as his cousins Javed Burki and Majid Khan.[21] Maternally, Khan is also a descendant of the Sufi warrior-poet and inventor of the Pashto alphabet, Pir Roshan, who hailed from his maternal family's ancestral Kaniguram town located in South Waziristan in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.[25] His maternal family was based in Basti Danishmanda, Jalandhar in Punjab, India for about 600 years, and migrated to Lahore after the independence of Pakistan.[26][27]
A quiet and shy boy in his youth, Khan grew up with his sisters in relatively affluent, upper middle-class circumstances[28] and received a privileged education. He was educated at the Aitchison College and Cathedral School in Lahore,[29][30] and then the Royal Grammar School Worcester in England, where he excelled at cricket. In 1972, he enrolled in Keble College, Oxford where he studied philosophy, politics and economics, graduating in 1975.[31] An enthusiast for college cricket at Keble, Paul Hayes, was instrumental in securing the admission of Khan, after he had been turned down by Cambridge.[32]
His first girlfriend, Emma Sergeant, an artist and the daughter of British investor Sir Patrick Sergeant, introduced him to socialites.[36] They first met in 1982 and subsequently visited Pakistan.[39] She accompanied him on various Pakistani cricket team tours including in Peshawar and Australian tour.[39] After long separations, his relationship with Sergeant was broken in 1986.[36] He then had a short relationship with Susie Murray-Philipson whom he invited to Pakistan and had dinner with in 1982.[36] She also made various artistic portraits of Khan during their relationship.[42][43]
In a book published in 2009, Christopher Sandford claimed that Khan and former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto had a close relationship when both were students in Oxford.[44] He wrote that Bhutto at the age of 21 first became close to Khan in 1975. They remained in a relationship for about two months.[44] His mother also tried to have an arranged marriage between them.[44] He further claimed that they had a "romantic relationship", which was refuted by Khan who said they were only friends.[44]
Khan allegedly has a daughter, Tyrian Jade, with his ex-girlfriend Sita White, daughter of the British industrialist Gordon White. Born in June 1992, Tyrian became a subject of dispute as Khan denied paternity and willed for a paternity test in Pakistan, stating he would accept the decision of the Pakistani courts. Legal actions in 1997 led to a California court declaring Khan as the father without a DNA test. After Sita White's death in 2004, Jemima, Khan's wife at the time and Sita's friend, was designated as Tyrian's legal guardian by Sita in her will. Khan stated that Tyrian would be welcome to join their family in London, leaving the decision entirely up to her, given her established relationship with his and Jemima's sons.[33][45][46][47][48][49][50][51]
Khan's former wife, Reham Khan, alleged in her book that he had told her that he had four other children out of wedlock in addition to Tyrian White. Allegedly, some of his children had Indian mothers and the eldest was aged 34 in 2018.[52][53][54] Reham subsequently conceded that she did not know the identities of Khan's children or the veracity of his statements and that "you can never make out whether he tells the truth."[55] Reham's book was published on 12 July 2018, 13 days before the 2018 Pakistani general election, leading to claims that its publication was intended to damage Imran Khan's electoral prospects.[56]
On 16 May 1995, Khan married Jemima Goldsmith,[34] in a two-minute ceremony conducted in Urdu in Paris. A month later, on 21 June, they were married again in a civil ceremony at the Richmond registry office in England. Jemima converted to Islam upon marriage. The couple have two sons, Sulaiman Isa and Kasim.[57] On 22 June 2004, it was announced that the couple had divorced, ending the nine-year marriage because it was "difficult for Jemima to adapt to life in Pakistan."[58]
In January 2015, it was announced that Khan had married British-Pakistani journalist Reham Khan in a private Nikah ceremony at his residence in Islamabad.[59][60] Reham Khan later states in her autobiography that they in fact got married in October 2014 but the announcement only came in January the year after. On 22 October 2015, they announced their intention to file for divorce.[61]
In mid-2016, late 2017 and early 2018, reports emerged that Khan had married his spiritual mentor (murshid), Bushra Bibi. Khan himself,[62][63] alongside PTI aides,[64][65] as well as members of the Manika family,[66][67] denied the rumour. Khan termed the media "unethical" for spreading the rumour,[68] and PTI filed a complaint against the news channels that had aired it.[69] On 7 January 2018, the PTI central secretariat issued a statement that said Khan had proposed to Manika, but she had not yet accepted his proposal.[70] On 18 February 2018, PTI confirmed Khan has married Manika.[71][72] According to Khan, his life has been influenced by Sufism for three decades, and this is what drew him closer to his wife.[73] The Mufti who conducted the marriage later testified to a court that Khan's nikah had been conducted twice. The first nikah was conducted on 1 January 2018, while his to-be wife was still in her Iddat, as Khan believed he would become prime minister if he married her on that date.[74]
Khan resided in his sprawling farmhouse at Bani Gala.[75] As of 2018, he owned five pet dogs, who resided in his estate.[76]
Cricket career
Khan made his debut at the age of 16 in Lahore. By the start of the 1970s, he was playing for his home teams of Lahore A (1969–1970), Lahore B (1969–1970), Lahore Greens (1970–1971), and eventually Lahore (1970–1971).[77] Khan was part of the University of Oxford's Blues Cricket team during the 1973–1975 seasons.[31] Khan played English county cricket from 1971 to 1976 for Worcestershire. During this decade, other teams represented by Khan included Dawood Industries (1975–1976) and Pakistan International Airlines (1975–1976, 1980–1981). From 1983 to 1988, he played for Sussex.[78]
Khan made his Test cricket debut against England in June 1971 at Edgbaston.[79] Three years later, in August 1974, he debuted in the One Day International (ODI) match, once again playing against England at Trent Bridge for the Prudential Trophy.[79] After graduating from Oxford and finishing his tenure at Worcestershire, he returned to Pakistan in 1976 and secured a permanent place on his native national team starting from the 1976–1977 season, during which they faced New Zealand and Australia.[77] Following the Australian series, he toured the West Indies, where he met Tony Greig, who signed him up for Kerry Packer's World Series Cricket.[78] His credentials as one of the fastest bowlers in the world started to become established when he finished third at 139.7km/h in a fast bowling contest at Perth in 1978, behind Jeff Thomson and Michael Holding but ahead of Dennis Lillee, Garth Le Roux, and Andy Roberts.[80] During the late 1970s, Khan was one of the pioneers of the reverse swing bowling technique.[81] He imparted this trick to the bowling duo of Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis, who mastered and popularised this art in later years.[82]
As a bowler, Khan initially bowled with a relatively chest-on action, at medium-pace;[83] however, he worked hard to remodel his action to a more classical type, and to strengthen his body, to enable fast bowling.[84][85] Khan attained his prime as a fast bowler in January 1980 till 1988 when he became out and out fast bowler. During this span Imran picked 236 test wickets at 17.77 apiece with 18 five-wicket hauls and 5 10 wicket hauls. His bowling average and strike rate were better than Richard Hadlee (19.03), Malcolm Marshall (20.20), Dennis Lillee (24.07), Joel Garner (20.62), and Michael Holding (23.68).[86][87] In January 1983, playing against India, he attained a Test bowling rating of 922 points. Although calculated retrospectively (International Cricket Council (ICC) player ratings did not exist at the time), Khan's form and performance during this period ranks third in the ICC's All-Time Test Bowling Rankings.[88]
Khan achieved the all-rounder's triple (securing 3000 runs and 300 wickets) in 75 Tests, the second-fastest record behind Ian Botham's 72. He also has the second-highest all-time batting average of 61.86 for a Test batsman playing at position 6 in the batting order.[89] He played his last Test match for Pakistan in January 1992, against Sri Lanka at Faisalabad. Khan retired permanently from cricket six months after his last ODI, the historic 1992 Cricket World Cup Final against England in Melbourne, Australia.[90] He ended his career with 88 Test matches, 126 innings and scored 3807 runs at an average of 37.69, including six centuries and 18 fifties. His highest score was 136. As a bowler, he took 362 wickets in Test cricket, which made him the first Pakistani and world's fourth bowler to do so.[78] In ODIs, he played 175 matches and scored 3709 runs at an average of 33.41. His highest score was 102 not out. His best ODI bowling was 6 wickets for 14 runs, a record for the best bowling figures by any bowler in an ODI innings in a losing cause.[91]
Captaincy
At the height of his career, in 1982,[92] the thirty-year-old Khan took over the captaincy of the Pakistan cricket team from Javed Miandad.[93] As a captain, Khan played 48 Test matches, of which 14 were won by Pakistan, 8 lost and the remaining 26 were drawn. He also played 139 ODIs, winning 77, losing 57 and ending one in a tie.[78]
In the team's second match, Khan led them to their first Test win on English soil for 28 years at Lord's.[94] Khan's first year as captain was the peak of his legacy as a fast bowler as well as an all-rounder. He recorded the best Test bowling of his career while taking 8 wickets for 58 runs against Sri Lanka at Lahore in 1981–1982.[78] He also topped both the bowling and batting averages against England in three-Test series in 1982, taking 21 wickets and averaging 56 with the bat. Later the same year, he put up a highly acknowledged performance in a home series against the formidable Indian team by taking 40 wickets in six Tests at an average of 13.95. By the end of this series in 1982–1983, Khan had taken 88 wickets in 13 Test matches over a period of one year as captain.[77] This same Test series against India also resulted in a stress fracture in his shin that kept him out of cricket for more than two years. An experimental treatment funded by the Pakistani government helped him recover by the end of 1984 and he made a successful comeback to international cricket in the latter part of the 1984–1985 season.[78]
In 1987 in India, Khan led Pakistan in its first-ever Test series win and this was followed by Pakistan's first series victory in England during the same year.[94] During the 1980s, his team also recorded three creditable draws against the West Indies. India and Pakistan co-hosted the 1987 Cricket World Cup, but neither ventured beyond the semi-finals. Khan retired from international cricket at the end of the World Cup. In 1988, he was asked to return to the captaincy by the President of Pakistan, General Zia-Ul-Haq, and on 18 January, he announced his decision to rejoin the team.[78]
Soon after returning to the captaincy, Khan led Pakistan to another winning tour in the West Indies, which he has recounted as "the last time I really bowled well".[21] He was declared Man of the Series against West Indies in 1988 when he took 23 wickets in 3 Tests.[78] Khan's career-high as a captain and cricketer came when he led Pakistan to victory in the 1992 Cricket World Cup. Playing with a brittle batting line-up, Khan promoted himself as a batsman to play in the top order along with Javed Miandad, but his contribution as a bowler was minimal. At the age of 39, Khan took the winning last wicket himself.[77][95][96]
He holds as a captain the world record for taking most wickets, best bowling strike rate and best bowling average in Test,[97][98] and best bowling figures (8 wickets for 60 runs) in a Test innings,[99] and also most five-wicket hauls (6) in a Test innings in wins.[100]
After retiring, Khan admitted to ball tampering during his early cricketing days when playing domestic cricket. Khan had said that, during matches, he "occasionally scratched the side of the ball and lifted the seam". Khan defended his actions in the same interview, arguing his conduct was commonplace at the time, even that spin bowlers would lift the seam (i.e. mildly ball tamper); further Khan argued that as he did not lift the seam of the ball above the normal level he was not violating the rules and spirit of the game within the rules defined while he was a player. Further, Khan argued that umpires in his 21 years of cricket had not complained about his conduct; Khan remarked that "The sole judge of fair and unfair play on the cricket field is the umpire".[101] He had also added, "Only once did I use an object. When Sussex was playing Hampshire in 1981 the ball was not deviating at all. I got the 12th man to bring out a bottle top and it started to move around a lot."[102]
In 1996, Khan successfully defended himself in a libel action brought forth by former English captain and all-rounder Ian Botham and batsman Allan Lamb over comments they alleged were made by Khan in two articles about the above-mentioned ball-tampering and another article published in an Indian magazine, India Today. They claimed that, in the latter publication, Khan had called the two cricketers "racist, ill-educated and lacking in class." Khan protested that he had been misquoted, saying that he was defending himself after having admitted that he tampered with a ball in a county match 18 years ago.[103] Khan won the libel case, which the judge labelled a "complete exercise in futility", with a 10–2 majority decision by the jury.[103] Also, Khan had served as a domestic league coach.[104]
Khan served as the chancellor of the University of Bradford between November 2005 and November 2014.
Since retiring, Khan has written opinion pieces on cricket for various British and Asian newspapers, especially regarding the Pakistani national team. His contributions have been published in the Indian magazine Outlook,[105]The Guardian,[106]The Independent, and The Daily Telegraph. Khan occasionally appeared as a cricket commentator on Asian and British sports networks, including BBC Urdu[107] and the Star TV network.[108] In 2004, when the Indian cricket team toured Pakistan after 14 years, he was a commentator on TEN Sports' special live show, Straight Drive,[109] while he was also a Sify columnist for the 2005 India-Pakistan Test series. He has provided analysis for every cricket World Cup since 1992, which includes providing match summaries for the BBC during the 1999 Cricket World Cup.[110]
In February 2024, Khan was mentioned as a possible candidate to be Chancellor of the University of Oxford, following the announcement of the retirement of the incumbent, Chris Patten.[117] On 18 August 2024, Khan's advisor Zulfi Bukhari confirmed that the nomination papers were submitted on behalf of Khan.[118][119]
During the 1990s, Khan also served as UNICEF's Special Representative for Sports[120] and promoted health and immunisation programmes in Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Thailand.[121] While in London, he also works with the Lord's Taverners, a cricket charity.[122] Khan focused his efforts solely on social work. By 1991, he had founded the Shaukat Khanum Memorial Trust, a charity organisation bearing the name of his mother, Mrs. Shaukat Khanum.[122][123][124] As the Trust's maiden endeavour, Khan established Pakistan's first and then only cancer hospital, constructed using donations and funds exceeding $25million, raised by Khan from all over the world.[122][125]
On 27 April 2008, Khan established a technical college in the Mianwali District called Namal College.[126][127] It was built by the Mianwali Development Trust (MDT), and is an associate college of the University of Bradford in December 2005.[128][129] Imran Khan Foundation is another welfare work, which aims to assist needy people all over Pakistan. It has provided help to flood victims in Pakistan. Buksh Foundation has partnered with the Imran Khan Foundation to light up villages in Dera Ghazi Khan, Mianwali and Dera Ismail Khan under the project 'Lighting a Million Lives'. The campaign will establish several Solar Charging Stations in the selected off-grid villages and will provide villagers with solar lanterns, which can be regularly charged at the solar-charging stations.[130][131]
Early political career
Initial years
Khan tearing his nomination paper for the National Assembly at a press conference; he boycotted the 2008 elections.
Khan was offered political positions more than a few times during his cricketing career. In 1987, President Zia-ul-Haq offered him a political position in the Pakistan Muslim League (PML) which he politely declined.[132] Khan was also invited by Nawaz Sharif to join his political party.[132] In 1993, Khan was appointed as the ambassador for tourism in the caretaker government of Moeenuddin Ahmad Qureshi and held the portfolio for three months until the government dissolved.[133] In 1994, Khan joined the Jamiat-e-Pasban, a breakaway faction of Jamaat-e-Islami, of Hamid Gul and Muhammad Ali Durrani.[132] On 25 April 1996, Khan founded a political party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).[21][134] He ran for the seat of National Assembly of Pakistan in 1997 Pakistani general election as a candidate of PTI from two constituencies – NA-53, Mianwali and NA-94, Lahore – but was unsuccessful and lost both the seats to candidates of PML (N).[135]
Khan supported General Pervez Musharraf's military coup in 1999,[136] believing Musharraf would "end corruption, clear out the political mafias".[137] According to Khan, he was Musharraf's choice for prime minister in 2002 but turned down the offer.[138] Khan participated in the October 2002 Pakistani general election that took place across 272 constituencies and was prepared to form a coalition if his party did not get a majority of the vote.[139] He was elected from Mianwali.[140] In the 2002 Pakistani referendum, Khan supported military dictator General Musharraf.[141] He also served as a part of the Standing Committees on Kashmir and Public Accounts.[142] On 6 May 2005, Khan was mentioned in The New Yorker as being the "most directly responsible" for drawing attention in the Muslim world to the Newsweek story about the alleged desecration of the Qur'an in a US military prison at the Guantánamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba.[143] In June 2007, Khan faced political opponents in and outside the parliament.[144]
On 2 October 2007, as part of the All Parties Democratic Movement, Khan joined 85 other MPs to resign from Parliament in protest of the presidential election scheduled for 6 October, which general Musharraf was contesting without resigning as army chief.[145] On 3 November 2007, Khan was put under house arrest, after president Musharraf declared a state of emergency in Pakistan. Later Khan escaped and went into hiding.[146] He eventually came out of hiding on 14 November to join a student protest at the University of the Punjab.[147] At the rally, Khan was captured by student activists from the Islami Jamiat-e-Talaba and roughly treated.[148] He was arrested during the protest and was sent to the Dera Ghazi Khan jail in the Punjab province where he spent a few days before being released.[149]
Khan at the conference "Rule of Law: The Case of Pakistan" organised by the Heinrich Böll Foundation in Berlin
On 30 October 2011, Khan addressed more than 100,000 supporters in Lahore, challenging the policies of the government, calling that new change a "tsunami" against the ruling parties,[150] Another successful public gathering of hundreds of thousands of supporters was held in Karachi on 25 December 2011.[151] Since then Khan became a real threat to the ruling parties and a future political prospect in Pakistan. According to an International Republican Institute's survey, Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf tops the list of popular parties in Pakistan both at the national and provincial level.[152][153]
On 6 October 2012, Khan joined a vehicle caravan of protesters from Islamabad to the village of Kotai in Pakistan's South Waziristan region against US drone missile strikes.[154][155] On 23 March 2013, Khan introduced the Naya Pakistan Resolution (New Pakistan) at the start of his election campaign.[156] On 29 April The Observer termed Khan and his party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf as the main opposition to the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz.[157] Between 2011 and 2013, Khan and Nawaz Sharif began to engage each other in a bitter feud. The rivalry between the two leaders grew in late 2011 when Khan addressed his largest crowd at Minar-e-Pakistan in Lahore.[158] From 26 April 2013, in the run up to the elections, both the PML-N and the PTI started to criticise each other.[159]
Khan with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry after the 2013 elections
On 21 April 2013, Khan launched his final public relations campaign for the 2013 Pakistani general election from Lahore, where he addressed thousands of supporters at the Mall.[160] Khan announced that he would pull Pakistan out of the US-led war on terror and bring peace to the Pashtun tribal belt.[161] He addressed different public meetings in various cities of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and other parts of country, where he announced that PTI will introduce a uniform education system in which the children of rich and poor would have equal opportunities.[162] Khan ended his south Punjab campaign by addressing rallies in various Seraiki belt cities.[163]
The last survey before the elections by The Herald showed 24.98 per cent of voters nationally planned to vote for his party, just a whisker behind former prime minister Nawaz Sharif's PML-N.[164][165] On 7 May, just four days before the elections, Khan was rushed to Shaukat Khanum hospital in Lahore after he tumbled from a forklift at the edge of a stage and fell headfirst to the ground.[166][167] Khan ended the campaign by addressing a rally of supporters in Islamabad via video link while lying on a bed at a hospital in Lahore.[168] The 2013 Pakistani general election was held on 11 May throughout the country. The elections resulted in a clear majority of Pakistan Muslim League (N).[169][170] Khan's PTI emerged as the second-largest party by popular vote nationally, including in Karachi.[171][172] Khan's party PTI won 30 directly elected parliamentary seats and became the third-largest party in National Assembly behind Pakistan People's Party, which was second.[173]
The Khan led Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf became the opposition party in Punjab and Sindh, with Khan becoming the parliamentary leader of his party.[174][175] On 31 July 2013, Khan was issued a contempt of court notice for allegedly criticising the superior judiciary,[176] and his use of the word shameful for the judiciary. The notice was discharged after Khan submitted before the Supreme Court that he criticised the lower judiciary for their actions during the May 2013 general election while those judicial officers were working as returning officers.[177] Khan's party swooped the militancy-hit northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and formed the provincial government.[178][179] PTI-led Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government presented a balanced, tax-free budget for the fiscal year 2013–14.[180] During his provincial government, Khan was criticised for his support for Sami-ul-Haq, the "Father of the Taliban," and giving funds to his seminary, Darul Uloom Haqqania.[181]
Khan believed that terrorist activities by the Pakistani Taliban could be stopped through dialogue with them and even offered them to open an office in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. He accused the United States of sabotaging peace efforts with the Pakistani Taliban by killing its leader Hakimullah Mehsud in a drone strike in 2013. He demanded the government to block NATO supply line in retaliation for the killing of the TTP leader.[182] On 13 November 2013, Khan ordered Chief Minister of Khyber PakhtunkhwaPervez Khattak to dismiss Bakht Baidar and Ibrar Hussan Kamoli of the Qaumi Watan Party (QWP) over corruption allegations and to end the PTI's alliance with the party. Baidar, Minister for Manpower and Industry, and Kamoli, Minister for Forest and Environment, were removed, respectively.[183]
A year after elections, on 11 May 2014, Khan alleged that 2013 general elections were rigged in favour of the ruling PML (N).[184] On 14 August 2014, Imran Khan led a rally of supporters from Lahore to Islamabad, demanding Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's resignation and investigation into alleged electoral fraud.[185] On its way to the capital Khan's convoy was attacked by stones from PML (N) supporters in Gujranwala; there were no fatalities.[186] Khan was reported to be attacked with guns which forced him to travel in a bullet-proof vehicle.[187] On 15 August, Khan-led protesters entered the capital and a few days later marched into the high-security Red Zone; on 1 September 2014, according to Al Jazeera, protesters attempted to storm Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's official residence, which prompted the outbreak of violence. Three people died and more than 595 people were injured, including 115 police officers.[188] Prior to the violence that resulted in deaths, Khan asked his followers to take law into their own hands.[189]
By September 2014, Khan had entered into a de facto alliance with Canadian-Pakistani cleric Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri; both have aimed to mobilise their supporters for regime change.[190][191] Khan entered into an agreement with the Sharif administration to establish a three-member high-powered judicial commission which would be formed under a presidential ordinance. The commission would make its final report public. If the commission found a country-wide pattern of rigging proved, the prime minister would dissolve the national and provincial assemblies in terms of the articles 58(1) and 112(1) of the Constitution – thereby meaning that the premier would also appoint the caretaker setup in consultation with the leader of the opposition and fresh elections would be held.[192] He also discussed the political situation of the country with Syed Mustafa Kamal when he was in the opposition.[193]
The same year, Khan and Sheikh Rasheed petitioned the Panama Papers Case in the aftermath of the Panama Papers leak, which uncovered links between the Sharif family and eight offshore companies.[194][195][196] The Court initially ordered the formation of a joint investigation team (JIT) to inquire into allegations of money laundering, corruption, and contradictory statements by Sharif and his relations in a 3–2 split decision on 20 April 2017, with the dissenting judges ruling that Sharif be disqualified.[197] Following this, prime minister Nawaz Sharif was disqualified from holding public office in a unanimous verdict.[198] The case was described as the most publicised in Pakistan's history, as well as a "defining moment" for the country.[199][200]
In May 2018, Khan's party announced a 100-day agenda for a possible future government. The agenda included sweeping reforms in almost all areas of government including creation of a new province in Southern Punjab, fast tracking of merger of Federally Administered Tribal Areas into Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, betterment of law and order situation in Karachi, and betterment of relations with Baloch political leaders.[210][211][212]
Post-2018 election reaction
A number of opposition parties have alleged "massive rigging" in Khan's favour amid allegations of military interference in the general elections.[213] Nawaz Sharif and his PML-N party, in particular, claimed that a conspiracy between the judiciary and military had influenced the election in favour of Khan and PTI.[214] The Election Commission rejected allegations of rigging, and Sharif and his PML-N later conceded victory to Khan, despite lingering 'reservations' regarding the result.[215][216] Two days after the 2018 general elections were held, the chief observer of the European UnionElection Observation Mission to Pakistan Michael Gahler confirmed that the overall situation of the general election was satisfactory.[217]
Victory speech
During his victory speech, he laid out the policy outlines for his future government. Khan said his inspiration is to build Pakistan as a humanitarian state based on principles of the first Islamic state of Medina. He described that his future government will put the poor and commoners of the country first and all policies will be geared towards elevating the standards of living of the lesser fortunate. He promised an investigation into rigging allegations. He said that he wanted a united Pakistan and would refrain from victimising his political opponents. Everyone would be equal under the law. He promised a simple and less costly government, devoid of showy pompousness in which the prime minister's house will be converted into an educational institute and governor houses will be used for public benefit.[218] On foreign policy, he praised China and hoped to have better relations with Afghanistan, United States, and India. On Middle East, he said his government will strive to have a balanced relationship with Saudi Arabia and Iran.[218]
His government undertook major cabinet reshuffles and faced economic challenges, resulting in seeking an IMF bailout, as well as implementing austerity measures.[236] By 2020, Pakistan's balance of payments improved, fiscal deficit successfully narrowed to 1% of GDP due to austerity measures, and tax collection reached record highs.[237][238] In June 2020, Bloomberg reported that Imran Khan saw his "influence and popularity dwindle due to a slowing economy, high consumer prices and corruption investigations involving his close aides." The article also stated that the Army's direct influence in civilian government continued to increase, with military officials appointed in government posts and "begun taking a more active role" in policy making.[239]
The economy did not improve under Khan's government, bringing political problems. Pakistanis experienced higher taxes and higher energy prices. The rupee depreciated to record lows against the dollar, fuelling inflation, which rose to 11.5% in November 2021.[240] After Imran Khan's vote of no-confidence, economist Atif Mian said that Imran Khan "inherited a bad economy but left it in even worse shape." He further criticized the PTI government for several different policies.[241]
On the international stage he emphasised Islamic unity through his efforts against Islamophobia and leadership in the OIC.[242] Him and his close foreign minister, Shah Mehmood Qureshi established good relations with Saudi Arabia, though he stated that he sought to mediate between Iran and Saudi Arabia amidst their proxy-conflict.[243] Khan maintained a strong stance on the Kashmir issue, refusing talks with India until autonomy was restored in Indian-held Kashmir.[244] Khan also criticised the American drone campaign in Pakistan, as well as declared that the Taliban-led government in Afghanistan should be recognised and not isolated.[245]
Domestically, Khan's government banned certain extremist groups such as Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD), and Falah-e-Insaniat Foundation (FIF).[246] In June 2019, Khan removed General Asim Munir from his position as Director-General of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and replaced him with General Faiz Hameed. The Daily Telegraph alleged that Munir's removal followed Munir telling Khan that he wanted to investigate corruption allegations against Khan's wife, Bushra Bibi, and her inner circle. Farzana Shaikh, from think-tank Chatham House, said that Munir may have faced difficulties when he raised the corruption allegations with Khan. Khan said Munir did not show him any proof of Bibi's corruption and Khan did not ask Munir to resign because of his request to investigate.[247]
Despite Khan's promises to curb corruption in Pakistan, the nation's rankings in the Corruption Perceptions Index produced by Transparency International declined during his administration. Pakistan fell from 117th in 2018 to 140th in 2021. Amber Shamsi said that dozens of opposition figures had been accused of corruption and jailed without being prosecuted. In response to the CPI report, Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry said Pakistan "need[s] reforms in the areas of the rule of law and state capture as mentioned in the report". Critics have questioned the effectiveness and impartiality of Khan's anti-corruption policies. Michael Kugelman, from the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, said "Anti-corruption is one of those goals that is so much easier to envision when in the opposition than inside the system. Khan has learned that the hard way".[240]
In social policy, his administration restored minority religious sites,[248] reformed education and healthcare, and launched the Ehsaas Programme which served 100 million people with financial assistance, while many also benefited from healthcare and welfare assistance through the initiative.[249] Ehsaas, which was Khan's flagship initiative, has been viewed as a success by national and international experts.[250] It helped bring about positive change and is seen as a global model for poverty reduction.[251][252] The World Bank declared it a role model for other countries.[253][254] The Ehsaas Emergency Cash Programme successfully protected the poor and daily wage earners in the country who were affected by lockdowns by providing cash disbursements during the COVID-19 pandemic.[255][256]
Plant for Pakistan, also known as 10 Billion Tree Tsunami, was a five-year project to plant 10 billion trees across Pakistan from 2018 to 2023.[257] Khan initiated the programme on 2 September 2018 with approximately 1.5 million trees planted on the first day.[258][259] Most of the work, which paid between 500 and 800 rupees (US$3–5) a day, took place in rural areas, with people setting up nurseries, planting saplings, and serving as forest protection guards. The plan was awarded 7.5 billion rupees ($46m) in funding.[260] According to an editorial published in The Nation, in September 2022 the Auditor General of Pakistan (AGP) found Rs 3.49 billion of "irregularities" after a three-year audit of the Plant for Pakistan/Billion trees program. Irregularities included "over-claimed" areas, "fictitiously claimed plantation activities", "uncertified and ungraded seeds ... from unauthentic sources", "fake and excessive reporting by the staff'".[261]
Khan faced criticism for certain comments and policies including his stance on the Taliban,[262] reports about his relationship with the Pakistani Armed Forces including with General Bajwa and journalists reportedly facing threats and targeting during his time in office.[263] Imran Khan was criticised during the COVID-19 pandemic for "playing the blame game by bashing opposition politicians to divert the masses’ attention from the pandemic’s effect",[264] for contributing to pandemic-related response confusion,[265][266] being "lackadaisical" and having "deprived the country of a clear sense of direction."[267]Ayesha Siddiqa criticised Imran Khan, saying he "appeared confused and not in charge of the situation. From poorly explaining the risks associated with the spread of the deadly coronavirus to badly calculating the pros and cons of a lockdown, the Pakistan Prime Minister has looked clueless."[268]
He was praised by Bangladesh's The Business Standard for his "Smart Lockdowns".[269] Muhammad Zohaib Jawaid in 2020 said the PTI government achieved a "V-shaped economic recovery".[270] Shuja Nawaz in 2021 wrote Pakistan's "serious economic crisis exacerbated by COVID-19 forced Khan to seek external assistance" from the IMF, Saudi Arabia and China.[271] In November 2021 the Financial Times reported that the Rupee had dropped 30% in value since Imran Khan's inauguration and that "inflation has surged to the worst level in years, with an index tracking everyday essentials such as fuel, food and soap last week rising above 18 per cent year on year."[272]
He was removed from office in March 2022, amidst a motion of no-confidence against his government where many of his coalition partners left his government resulting in his ousting, being the first prime minister of Pakistan successfully overthrown by a no-confidence motion. The motion was controversial as some alleged a foreign conspiracy called Lettergate was behind it, while many alleged that it was due to Imran Khan's worsening relations with the Pakistan Armed Forces, which allegedly pushed for Khan's removal following political tensions between Khan and the military.[273]
The Pakistan Democratic Movement's MNAs brought the Toshakhana case against Khan in August 2022 because he failed to disclose the specifics of gifts from Toshakhana in his yearly report to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).[274] The investigation was started by the ECP, which made its final determination on 21 October 2022, disqualifying Imran from holding public office for making false statements and incorrect declarations regarding his assets and liabilities for the tax year 2020–21 in the reference under Article 63(1)(p) of the constitution of Pakistan.[275][276] Following the verdict, Khan organised the Azadi March II to protest.[277]
On 3 November 2022, Khan was shot in the leg and his foot by a gunman while giving a speech to supporters at a rally in Wazirabad, Punjab, and leading a march to the capital Islamabad to demand snap elections after he was ousted. Automatic gunfire was heard in footage aired on local news channels which also showed Khan being carried away and put in a car, with a bandage visible on his leg. Khan's conditions were not described as critical.[278][279] A PTI party's supporter was killed during the shooting, and eight other people were also wounded. The perpetrator known as Muhammad Naveed was arrested at the scene and claimed that he wanted only to target Khan for "spreading hatred and misleading the people".[280][281] Khan blamed the incumbent government for the assassination plot, primarily prime minister Shehbaz Sharif, Interior minister Rana Sanaullah and the Director General Counter Intelligence of the Inter-Services IntelligenceFaisal Naseer.[282][283]
As a result of an arrest warrant issued by the district and sessions court in Islamabad, the Islamabad Police and Lahore Police started an operation to arrest Khan on 14 March 2023.[284][285] On 9 May, Khan was arrested at the Islamabad High Court by paramilitary forces;[286][287][288] this was over his alleged role in the Al-Qadir Trust case,[289][290] after which PTI-party members had called for nationwide protests.[291][292][293] His arrest led to widespread protests and the May 9 riots.[294] The arrest was later declared illegal by the Supreme Court.[295] Following the 9 May riots, many PTI members deserted Khan and founded the Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party under the leadership of Jahangir Tareen.[296] On 12 May, the Islamabad High Court declared the arrest illegal and mandated Khan's immediate release.[297] Khan was granted protected bail and released on the same day, meaning he could not be re-arrested on those charges for two weeks.[297]
On 5 August 2023, Khan was arrested for the second time and sentenced to three years in prison after being found guilty of misusing his premiership from 2018 to 2022 to buy and sell gifts in state possession that were received during visits abroad and worth more than 140 million rupees.[5][6] On 29 August 2023, an appeals court suspended Khan's corruption conviction and three-year prison term, and granted bail.[7][8][9] Despite the suspended conviction in the corruption case, a special court in Islamabad ordered that he remain incarcerated in connection with the "cypher case": Khan has repeatedly alleged that he received a cypher, or diplomatic cable, which contained proof that there was a US led conspiracy with Pakistan's military establishment to oust him from office. The Federal Investigation Agency registered a case against Khan for sharing information on the alleged cypher and leaking state secrets, and thereby violating the Official Secrets Act.[10][11]
On 30 January 2024, Khan was convicted and sentenced to 10 years' imprisonment over the case. Khan reacted by urging voters to "take revenge for every injustice with your vote" in the 2024 Pakistani general election on 8 February. One of his lawyers called the decision illegal, and his legal team planned to appeal the decision.[298] Many observers alleged that the sentence was part of a campaign to sideline Khan and the PTI before the 2024 elections;[299] Khan himself described all the charges against him as "politically motivated". His then-foreign minister and deputy in the PTI, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, was also sentenced to 10 years' imprisonment over the case.[298] Khan's sister Aleema said that prosecutors had sought the death penalty for her brother.[300] The next day, Khan was convicted and sentenced to 14 years' imprisonment for the Toshakhana case,[301] which involved the illegal sale of state gifts given to him and his wife, Bushra Bibi, when he was prime minister.[302] The sentence was suspended on 1 April pending an appeal.[303] On 3 February, Khan and his wife were convicted and sentenced to an additional seven years in prison and fined 500,000 rupees ($1,800) each following a criminal complaint by Bushra Bibi's former husband, Khawar Maneka, saying that Bushra did not complete her Iddat before marrying Khan in 2018.[304] On 16 February, his legal team filed an appeal against the three consecutive convictions.[305]
Since his arrest in August, Khan has been held in the Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi, where his trial was also held.[298] On 8 February, a PTI official said Khan had been allowed to vote in prison for the 2024 Pakistani general election using a postal ballot.[306] On 12 March 2024, the Government of Punjab imposed a two-week ban on visits to the prison.[307]
On 3 June 2024, the Islamabad High Court overturned Khan's conviction on the cypher case.[308] Khan remained in prison due to his conviction for a breach of the marriage laws.[309] On 13 July, Khan's conviction in the marriage case with Bushra Bibi was overturned following an appeal.[310] Khan remained in prison and was then arrested on charges related to the 2023 riots. Since the 2022 no-confidence vote, Khan has been involved in over 150 court cases.[311]
On 8 October 2024, an attempted murder charge was filed against him over the death of a police officer during protests by Khan's supporters in Islamabad.[312]
Imprisonment
In August 2023, the government submitted a report to the Supreme Court of Pakistan, stating that Khan's daily meals included bread, omelette, curd, and tea for breakfast, along with fresh fruits, vegetables, pulses, rice, and desi mutton cooked in ghee for lunch and dinner. His cell was cleaned daily by a designated sanitary worker, and additional security personnel were deployed for his safety. The Supreme Court had ordered the government to submit this report following Khan's complaints about the conditions in which he was being held.[313]
During Khan's imprisonment, he has retained a presence in Pakistani politics, with reports suggesting a rise in his popularity, particularly among the youth.[314][315][316] There have been a lack of public demonstrations in his favour since his arrest due to media outlets under instructions not to cover PTI's activities, police actions against Khan's supporters making them fearful of arrest, and a reduction in the number of PTI members. The BBC reported that "silent support" for Khan was still strong.[317] Khan has said that his imprisonment has political motivations, alleging involvement by the Pakistan Armed Forces (referred to as The Establishment) and the government of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. Both the military and the government have denied these allegations, with the military labelling them as 'fabricated and malicious,' and Prime Minister Sharif rejecting them as 'blatant lies.'[318][319] While he was brought before the Supreme Court by the jail authorities, Khan alleged that Pakistan is under what he describes as an "undeclared martial law."[320][321] He argues that his detention is part of a broader attempt to suppress democratic forces and weaken opposition.[317] He also stated that he deeply regretted trusting General Bajwa and implicated him in causing the country’s turmoil.[322]
On 30 May 2024, told the Supreme Court that he was living in solitary confinement and the government had put restrictions on his meeting with lawyers and family members. The Pakistani government told the Supreme Court in June that the conditions of Khan's imprisonment included a walking area adjacent to his cell, a cooler, a television, and exercise equipment. It said that Khan has access to a separate kitchen and could meet with his legal team and family. In its submission, the government provided photographs of Khan’s cell and other items and a photo of a meeting between him and his legal team in prison.[323]
In June 2024, a United NationsWorking Group on Arbitrary Detention called for Khan's release, arguing that his detention was arbitrary and politically motivated. Khan was sentenced on corruption charges in 2023.[324]Amnesty International raised similar concerns, particularly over the conditions of his imprisonment.[325] In an interview with The Sunday Times in July from prison, Khan said he is being held in a small, 'death cell' typically reserved for terrorists.[326] Khan's legal team and his sister, Aleema Khan, said that the authorities are endangering his health and attempting to weaken him by keeping him in poor conditions, while Aleema also stated that Khan was suffering from an eye infection.[327][328][329] A regular medical examination is performed every two weeks, and no health issues have been reported during his imprisonment by authorities.[330]
Despite his imprisonment, Khan remains politically active, having applied to run in the 2024 University of Oxford Chancellor Election. His candidacy has gained attention, with supporters promoting the campaign on social media.[331][332]
Khan's candidacy has also attracted some concerns due to the timing, coinciding with ongoing political unrest in Pakistan and his imprisonment on multiple charges, including corruption and sedition. While his supporters argue these charges are politically motivated, critics suggest that his legal battles and the broader political context might distract from his ability to focus on the responsibilities of the role. Some observers see his candidacy as a way to draw international attention to his political situation, which could raise questions about whether his motivations are primarily political rather than academic.[331][332]
Catherine Bennet writing for The Guardian raised concerns over his candidacy due to his controversial statements and affiliations. She pointed to remarks, such as calling Osama bin Laden a "martyr" and his expressed support for the Taliban, particularly regarding their policies on women's education and his views on rape. Khan's suggestions that women must dress modestly to prevent sexual violence were condemned as victim-blaming,[333] undermining efforts to combat gender-based violence and perpetuating harmful stereotypes. These perspectives conflict with Oxford's commitment to diversity, equality, and inclusion. With strong alternative candidates like Lady Elish Angiolini, who prioritises accessibility and social justice, she argues that Khan's candidacy poses a risk to the university's reputation and progressive ideals. She contends that his views indicate a broader disregard for women's rights, rendering him an unsuitable representative for an institution dedicated to equality and safeguarding individual rights.[334]
Asad Iqbal writing for The Oxford Blue, Daniel Hannan writing for Zeteo and Peter Oborne writing for the Middle East Eye stated that Imran Khan is the ideal pick for chancellor, due to his achievements, primarily citing moral strength and his personal values as reasons. Oborne had concerns about human rights and media freedom under Khan's premiership. Oborne further said that Khan would be the only candidate that cares about the plight of the Palestinians. He was also praised by Iqbal for his establishment of the Shaukat Khanum Cancer Memorial Hospital, which Iqbal stated was another reason for Khan being fit for the role. Iqbal went on to praise Khan’s flagship Ehsaas Programme and called Khan a "champion of women’s participation in governance".[335][336][337]
On 18 October 2024, University officials excluded him from the race of chancellorship stating that his candidacy was disqualified based on established exclusion criteria, which led to the acceptance of 38 out of over 40 applicants. Key factors cited include Khan's prior conviction and his active political role, which were seen as inconsistent with the requirements for the position. Legal analysis from King's Counsel Hugh Southey of Matrix Chambers, as well as policy advocacy group Beltway Grid, said that Oxford's regulations set standards of integrity and impartiality that Khan did not meet.[338]
Khan's sister, Rubina Khanum, claimed that Zulfi Bukhari "had dragged Imran Khan into the chancellor candidacy race for self-interest," further saying "Imran Khan is in jail; what interest does he have in becoming Oxford University's chancellor?"[339]
Wealth
In 2003, Khan had a house in Zaman Park, Lahore worth Rs.29 million (US$100,000). He was also an investor, investing more than Rs.40 million (US$140,000) in various businesses. He was owner of agriculture land of 39 kanals (5 acres) at Talhar, Islamabad, and 530 kanals (66 acres) at Khanewal and had a share in 363 kanals (44 acres) of other agricultural land that he had inherited.[340] Khan paid Rs.10.19 million (US$35,000) to buy two apartments at Shahra-e-Dastoor in Islamabad.[341] Other assets in 2017 included furniture worth Rs.0.6 million (US$2,100) and livestock valued at Rs.0.2 million (US$690). He then had no vehicle registered in his name.[342]
In 2017, Khan owned a 300-kanal mansion in Bani Gala, Islamabad, worth Rs.750 million (US$2.6million), which he declared as a gift in his statement to the Election Commission of Pakistan. The mansion is located within a gated enclosure and is accessible through a private driveway.[343] Documents released by the FBR in 2019 showed that over 37 years, Khan paid a total of Rs.4 million (equivalent to Rs.20millionorUS$71,000 in 2021) in taxes. The FBR states that during this period, he was exempted for some years from paying.[344] On 3 January 2022, FBR released its 2019 tax directory for parliamentarians and it was revealed that Khan had paid Rs.9.8 million (US$33,942) in taxes.[345] In 2023, Khan's net worth soared to an estimated Rs315.95 million and in the fiscal year ending 30 June 2023, he paid Rs15.59 million in income tax.[346]
Basing his wider paradigm on the poet-philosopher Muhammad Iqbal, the Iranian writer-sociologist Ali Shariati and the British diplomat-convert Charles Le Gai Eaton he came across in his youth,[347] Khan is generally described as a Pakistani nationalist,[348] as well as a populist.[349] Khan's proclaimed political platform and declarations include Islamic values, to which he rededicated himself in the 1990s; liberal economics, with the promise of deregulating the economy and creating a welfare state; decreased bureaucracy and the implementation of anti-corruption laws to create and ensure a clean government; the establishment of an independent judiciary; overhaul of the country's police system; and an anti-militant vision for a democratic Pakistan.[350][108][351][352]
Khan's failure to revive the economy of Pakistan and the rising inflation rate caused him political problems.[364] Despite his promised anti-corruption campaign, the perception of corruption in Pakistan worsened during his rule.[365] He was accused of political victimisation of opponents and clamping down on freedom of expression and dissent.[366]On 10 April 2022, Khan became the country's first prime minister to be ousted through a no-confidence motion vote in parliament. On 22 August 2022, Khan was charged by the Pakistani police under anti-terror laws after Khan accused the police and judiciary of detaining and torturing his close aide.[293]
Foreign relations
In foreign relations, he dealt with border skirmishes against India, strengthened relations with China and Russia,[367] while relations with the United States cooled. In 2010, Khan said in an interview: "I grew up hating India because I grew up in Lahore and there were massacres of 1947, so much bloodshed and anger. But as I started touring India, I got such love and friendship there that all this disappeared."[368] Khan views the Kashmir issue as a humanitarian issue, as opposed to a territorial dispute between two countries (India and Pakistan). He also proposed secret talks to settle the issue as he thinks the vested interests on both sides will try to subvert them. He ruled out a military solution to the conflict and denied the possibility of a fourth war between India and Pakistan over the disputed mountainous region.[369]
Khan publicly demanded a Pakistani apology towards the Bangladeshi people for the atrocities committed in 1971.[370][371] He called the 1971 operation a "blunder"[372] and likened it to today's treatment of Pashtuns in the war on terror.[371] He repeatedly criticised the war crimes trials in Bangladesh in favour of the convicts.[373]In August 2012, the Pakistani Taliban issued death threats if he went ahead with his march to their tribal stronghold along the Afghan border to protest US drone attacks, because he calls himself a "liberal" – a term they associate with a lack of religious belief.[374] On 1 October 2012, prior to his plan to address a rally in South Waziristan, senior commanders of Pakistani Taliban said after a meeting headed by the Taliban leader Hakimullah Mehsud that they now offered Khan security assistance for the rally because of Khan's opposition to drone attacks in Pakistan, reversing their previous stance.[375]
His perceived sympathy towards the Taliban, as well as his criticism of the US-led war on terror, has earned him the moniker "Taliban Khan" in Pakistani politics. He believes in negotiations with Taliban and the pull out of the Pakistan Army from Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA). He is against US drone strikes and plans to disengage Pakistan from the US-led war on terror. Khan also opposes almost all military operations, including the Siege of Lal Masjid.[376][377]
In 2014, when the Pakistani Taliban announced armed struggle against Ismailis, denouncing them as non-Muslims,[378] and the Kalash people, Khan released a statement describing "forced conversions as un-Islamic".[379] He has also condemned the incidents of forced conversion of Hindu girls in Sindh.[380] Following the Taliban takeover of Kabul in 2021, Khan congratulated the Taliban for their victory in the 2001–2021 war, and urged the international community to support their new government.[381][382][383] He also said that his government was negotiating a peace deal with the Pakistani Taliban with the help of the Afghan Taliban.[384][385]
On 8 January 2016, Khan visited the embassies of Iran and Saudi Arabia in Islamabad and met their head of commissions to understand their stances about the conflict that engulfed both nations after the Execution of Nimr al-Nimr by Saudi Arabia. He urged the Government of Pakistan to play a positive role to resolve the matter between both countries.[386] After parliament passed a unanimous resolution keeping Pakistan out of the War in Yemen in April 2015, Khan claimed that his party was responsible for "many critical clauses" of the resolution.[387] In July 2018, the Saudi-based Islamic Development Bank activated its $4.5billion oil financing facility for Pakistan.[388]
Khan's support for Pakistan's blasphemy laws carried over into relations with the West. In 2021, he called on "Muslim countries to pressure Western governments to make insulting" the Islamic Prophet Muhammad a crime, "likening this measure to laws against Holocaust denial".[389] He urged Muslims to launch a boycott on products of countries that do not punish "insult" to "the honour of the prophet". Blasphemy is a "sensitive subject" in Pakistan—at least 78 people have been murdered in mob violence and targeted attacks related to blasphemy accusations since 1990.[390] French president Emmanuel Macron became a lightning rod after defending a "publication's right to republish caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad", which many Pakistanis consider blasphemous.[390]
Public image
After the May 2013 elections, Mohammed Hanif writing for The Guardian, termed Khan's support as appealing "to the educated middle classes but Pakistan's main problem is that there aren't enough educated urban middle-class citizens in the country".[391]Pankaj Mishra writing for The New York Times in 2012, characterised Khan as a "cogent picture out of his—and Pakistan's—clashing identities" adding that "his identification with the suffering masses and his attacks on his affluent, English-speaking peers have long been mocked in the living rooms of Lahore and Karachi as the hypocritical ravings of "Im the Dim" and "Taliban Khan"—the two favored monikers for him." Mishra concluded with "like all populist politicians, Khan appears to offer something to everyone. Yet the great differences between his constituencies—socially liberal, upper-middle-class Pakistanis and the deeply conservative residents of Pakistan's tribal areas—seem irreconcilable."[392] His critics have often called him "Fitna Khan" and "Zinayi Khan".[393]
Khan addressing an Interfaith Christmas Dinner in 2014
On 18 March 2012, Salman Rushdie criticised Khan for refusing to attend the India Today Conference because of Rushdie's attendance. Khan cited the "immeasurable hurt" that Rushdie's writings have caused Muslims around the world. Rushdie, in turn, suggested that Khan was a "dictator in waiting."[394] In 2011, while writing for The Washington Post, Richard Leiby termed Khan as an underdog, adding that he "often sounds like a pro-democracy liberal but is well known for his coziness with conservative Islamist parties."[395]Ayesha Siddiqa, in September 2014, writing for The Express Tribune, said that "while we can all sympathise with Khan's right to change the political tone, it would be worthwhile for him to envision how he would, if he did become the prime minister of this country, put the genie back into the bottle."[396]H. M. Naqvi termed Khan as a "sort of a Ron Paul figure", adding that "there is no taint of corruption and there is his anti-establishment message."[395]
During the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s, Khan was a popular sex symbol.[397][398] He became known as a socialite in English high society,[398] and sported a playboy image among the British press and paparazzi due to his "non-stop partying" at London nightclubs such as Annabel's and Tramp, although he said he hated English pubs and that he never drank alcohol.[108][122][399] British heiress Sita White, daughter of Gordon White, Baron White of Hull, became the mother of his alleged lovechild daughter, Tyrian Jade White. A judge in the United States ruled him to be the father of Tyrian due to his failure to appear in court.[400] Khan asked for the case to be open in Pakistani courts.[401][402] Later in 2007, Election Commission of Pakistan ruled in favour of Khan and dismissed the ex parte judgement of the U.S. court, on grounds that it was neither admissible in evidence before any court or tribunal in Pakistan nor executable against him.[403] About his lifestyle as a bachelor, he has often said that, "I never claim to have led an angelic life."[21]
Declan Walsh in The Guardian newspaper in England in 2005 described Khan as a "miserable politician", observing that "Khan's ideas and affiliations since entering politics in 1996 have swerved and skidded like a rickshaw in a rainshower... He preaches democracy one day but gives a vote to reactionary mullahs the next."[404] Khan has also been accused by some opponents and critics of hypocrisy and opportunism, including what has been called his life's "playboy to puritan U-turn".[93] Political commentator Najam Sethi, stated: "A lot of the Imran Khan story is about backtracking on a lot of things he said earlier, which is why this doesn't inspire people."[93] Author Fatima Bhutto has criticised Khan for "incredible coziness not with the military but with dictatorship" as well as some of his political decisions.[405] Nevertheless, Khan's approval rating since he became Prime Minister remained comparatively robust for an officeholder in Pakistani politics, with a majority approving (51%), compared to 46% disapproval and 3% undecided.[406] Other polls suggested his approval was as high as 57%.[407] A more recent survey by Gallup Pakistan published in March 2023 depicted an increase in approval ratings for Khan to 61%.[408]
During his cricketing days, Khan featured in many advertisements and television commercials as a celebrity brand endorser. These included Pepsi Pakistan, Brooke Bond,[409]Thums Up (along with Sunil Gavaskar),[410] and the Indian soap brand Cinthol, at a time when Bollywood legend Vinod Khanna was also endorsing the same product.[411] His popularity in India was such that it was "unmatched in an era when there were no smartphones to take selfies. He was mobbed everywhere he went."[411] The late veteran Bollywood actor Dev Anand even offered him a role in his sports action-thriller movie Awwal Number (1990), that of a cricket star in decline opposite an upcoming cricketer essayed by Aamir Khan, and as he refused, citing his lack of acting skills, the role eventually went to Aditya Pancholi.[412]
In 2010, a Pakistani production house produced a biographical film based on Khan's life, titled Kaptaan: The Making of a Legend. The title, which is Urdu for "Captain", depicts Khan's captaincy and career with the Pakistan cricket team, which led them to victory in the 1992 cricket world cup, as well as events which shaped his life; from being ridiculed in cricket to being labelled a playboy;[413] from the death of his mother to his efforts and endeavours in building the first cancer hospital in Pakistan; from being the first Chancellor of the University of Bradford to the building of Namal University.[414][415]
Canadian rock band Nickelback released a music video for its politically themed single "Edge of a Revolution", featuring a short clip of a Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) rally among other protests. The brief clip from the PTI rally shows red-and-green party flags along with a poster of PTI Chairman Imran Khan, who was the most popular opposition leader.[416]
Views on the Pashtuns and Afghans
In his virtual address at the 76th Session of the United Nations General Assembly on 24 September 2021, Khan remarked “Then all along the tribal belt (FATA) bordering Afghanistan, – Pakistan's semi-autonomous tribal belt – where no Pakistan army had been there since our independence, they [the Pashtuns] had strong sympathies with the Afghan Taliban, not because of their religious ideology but because of Pashtun nationalism, which is very strong." His comments prompted outrage among many Pashtuns, who called on him to apologise. Khan made similar comments also on 11 October, which triggered a protest in Peshawar the next day by the leftist Mazdoor Kisan Party (MKP). The Awami National Party (ANP) and the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM) also condemned Khan for "linking the Pashtuns with terrorists."[417][418][419][420]
During his keynote address at the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation's (OIC) Extraordinary Session of Foreign Ministers on 19 December 2021, which was held in Islamabad to discuss the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan, Khan said that not allowing girls to study was part of Afghan culture, and that the world should respect that. His remarks were criticised by many people from Afghanistan and Pakistan,[421] including former Afghan president Hamid Karzai. Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai also slammed Khan's remarks, saying: "I nearly lost my life fighting against the Taliban's ban on girls' education."[422][423]
Controversies
Allegation of sexual harassment
In 2017, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) member Ayesha Gulalai alleged that she was sexually harassed by Khan, who was party chairman.[424] Gulalai said Khan had sent her "inappropriate text messages". Gulalai made the allegations and quit the PTI just prior to the election of a new prime minister, citing "ill-treatment" of female party members as the reason for leaving. The timing of Gulalai's allegations was met with suspicion, as there were rumours that she had recently met with Amir Muqam, a leader of the Pakistan Muslim League (N) (PML (N)). Gulalai denied these rumours, stating that she was not joining the PML (N).[425]
Alleged victim-blaming
In 2021, Khan faced criticism after suggesting that women's clothing could lead to an increase in sexual assault. During an interview with Axios journalist Jonathan Swan, Khan responded to a question about Pakistan's rape crisis by stating, "If a woman is wearing very few clothes it will have an impact on the man unless they are robots. It's common sense." His comments were widely condemned. Women's rights groups, including the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, demanded an apology, arguing that his remarks perpetuate harmful stereotypes by portraying men as "helpless aggressors" and women as "knowing" victims. Critics, such as politician Maryam Nawaz, labelled Khan a "rape apologist," while activist Kanwal Ahmed expressed concerns about the message his words sent to perpetrators.[333]
Then Special Assistant to the Prime Minister, Raoof Hasan, argued that Khan's comments on rape were taken out of context. Raoof stated that Khan's government had taken "groundbreaking" measures to increase women's rights and that Khan was attempting to stir a discussion through his statements.[426]Zartaj Gul, a minister in Khan's cabinet at the time, referred to Khan as a "symbol of women empowerment" and argued that his statements had been taken out of context.[427]
Khan later clarified his comments in an interview with Judy Woodruff on PBS News Hour, stating, “Anyone who commits rape, solely and solely, that person is responsible, no matter whatever – how much ever a woman is provocative or whatever she wears, the person who commits rape, he is fully responsible. Never is the victim responsible.” Regarding his previous remarks on the issue, Khan said his comments were “completely taken out of context.” He emphasized that he would never say such “a stupid thing” implying that a person who was raped is responsible for the crime. “It’s always the rapist that is responsible.”[428][429]
Misogynistic remarks
In 2022, during his speech, Imran Khan referenced a clip of Maryam Nawaz's speech, in which she mentioned his name multiple times. Khan remarked: "Someone sent me a clip on social media of Maryam's speech, somewhere. She took my name so many times and with so much passion, I want to tell her that Maryam, please be careful, your husband might get upset the way you call my name again and again." This comment, perceived as inappropriate and misogynistic, sparked significant criticism from both his opponents and some supporters.[430]
Khan has published six works of non-fiction, including an autobiography co-written with Patrick Murphy. He has also written about the modern history of Pakistan in his book Main Aur Mera Pakistan published in 2014 in Urdu and Hindi.[433] The book contains details about Pakistan's wars with India in 1965 and 1971, the impact of 1979 Iranian Revolution and capture of terrorist Osama bin Laden at Abbottabad in 2011.[434] He periodically writes editorials on cricket and Pakistani politics in several leading Pakistani and British newspapers. It was revealed in 2008 that Khan's second book, Indus Journey: A Personal View of Pakistan, had required heavy editing from the publisher. The publisher Jeremy Lewis revealed in a memoir that when he asked Khan to show his writing for publication, "He handed me a leather-bound notebook or diary containing a few jottings and autobiographical snippets. It took me, at most, five minutes to read them; and that, it soon became apparent, was all we had to go on."[435] Khan's most recent book was published in 2011, an autobiography about his transition from cricketer to politician, as well as the challenges he faced in his philanthropic work.[436]
Khan has also penned op-eds in various media outlets, including CNN where he advocated for conversation and restoration of damaged natural ecosystems.[437]
In June 2024, reports emerged that Imran, while in prison, has been writing a book over the past few months and has already completed over 300 pages.[438]
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↑ "Imran Khan". dawn.com. Dawn. 13 January 2012. Archived from the original on 23 September 2016. Retrieved 22 October 2016.
↑ "Imran Khan celebrates his 70th birthday". Bol News. 5 October 2022. Archived from the original on 5 June 2023. Retrieved 5 June 2023. 'My actual birthday date is October 5. It was mistakenly written as November 25th on my passport,' the former prime minister said on the occasion.
↑ Encyclopaedia Asiatica, Comprising Indian Subcontinent, Eastern and Southern Asia: H. Jangtang By Edward Balfour Published by Cosmo Publications, 1976 Item notes: v. 4 Original from the University of Michigan Page 188
↑ Christopher Sandford (6 August 2009). Imran Khan: The Cricketer, The Celebrity, The Politician. HarperCollins Publishers. pp.68–. ISBN978-0-00-734104-7. Imran had, meanwhile, left Aitchison College, whose vaunted enthusiasm for sports seems not to have extended to sharing one of their own with a professional cricket team. He spent his sixth-form year at the nearby Cathedral School.
↑ "Reham Khan's book 'available in paperback in UK'". The News (Pakistan). 12 July 2018. Archived from the original on 25 December 2018. Retrieved 25 July 2021. Reham's book, published online today, has triggered debate on social media with many saying that she is doing all this on the behest of Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz to tarnish the image of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Chairman Imran Khan just before the July 25 polls.
↑ Thomas Fletcher (6 April 2012). "Imran Khan". In John Nauright; Charles Parrish (eds.). Sports Around the World: History, Culture, and Practice. ABC-CLIO. p.231. ISBN978-1-59884-300-2.
↑ Sandford, Christopher (2009). Imran Khan: the cricketer, the celebrity, the politician: the biography. HarperCollins Publishers. ISBN978-0-00-735337-8. OCLC610566791.
↑ Findlay, Stephanie; Bokhari, Farhan (25 April 2020). "Pakistan's Imran Khan sidelined by military during coronavirus outbreak". Financial Times. Retrieved 5 November 2024. Even after the lockdown was announced, Mr Khan repeatedly questioned whether it was necessary, sowing confusion about the country's response as infections rose sharply.
↑ Siddiqa, Ayesha (18 September 2014). "No room for democracy". The Express Tribune. Archived from the original on 18 January 2017. Retrieved 16 January 2017.
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