Imran Khan: From Cricket Legend To Prime Minister Of Pakistan
Imran Khan is a former global cricket celebrity who promises that a”Naya Pakistan” and an end to corruption after claiming victory in the election.
The charismatic captain who led Pakistan to a World Cup victory in 1992 has shed his superstar playboy picture and styles himself as a pious, populist, anti-poverty reformer.
Imran Khan : From Cricket Legend To Prime Minister Of Pakistan
Mr. Khan, 65, fought for many years to develop popular support for electoral gains. He started his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in 1996, but he had been the sole candidate at the party to win a seat in 2002. The PTI boycotted the 2008 vote.
Though he’s been one of Pakistan’s best-known confronts globally, he spent decades on the political sidelines. That contributed to teasing – to a few Imran Khan became”Imran Khan.”
It took before the final general election in 2013 because of his party to emerge as a critical player, as it narrowly missed becoming the second biggest party nationwide.
But five years on, he’s claimed success as prime minister in Pakistan, a nuclear-armed Muslim republic and a possible flashpoint due to its rugged relations with India and Afghanistan.
Mr. Khan has faced accusations – which he denies – that he’s the army’s favored candidate and its intelligence agency has functioned behind the scenes against his key competitors.
He had an electoral swing of epic proportions to bring his political fantasies eventually. The PTI held only under one-tenth of the 342 seats in the National Assembly and had to create massive profits in the vital state of Punjab, which includes over half of those 272 directly-elected chairs.
Popularity as Playboy
Oxford-educated Mr. Khan had an illustrious career in international cricket spanning two years in the 1970s.
Also, he acquired a reputation as something of a playboy on the London nightclub circuit, even though he insists he never drank alcohol or participated in any actions which could be considered unsuitable for a conservative Pakistani Muslim.
Many state his subsequent forays into the fields of philanthropy and politics were fuelled by a desire to place to utilize the leadership qualities and goodwill that he obtained as a cricketer.
His pin-up appearances and personal life have assured he has been a favorite of the world’s press for decades.
Back in 1995, at age 43, he wed the 21-year-old British socialite, Jemima Goldsmith – the girl of one of the planet’s richest guys at the moment, Sir James Goldsmith.
The union produced two boys, however, was dissolved in 2004. The separation was amicable, and Mr. Khan seems to have maintained a friendly relationship with his ex-wife.
Another union in 2015, to journalist Reham Khan, lasted under a year. The prior BBC weather presenter alleges she had been bullied by his assistants and had composed a tell-all memoir. It’s been making waves in Pakistan, in which its novel was placed on hold by the courts at the run-up into the election.
Mr. Khan married again in 2018 at a low-profile service in Lahore. His third wife Bushra Watto, a mom of five, was explained as his spiritual advisor, and observers say the game plays nicely with his public exhibits of loyalty to Islam.
As a politician, Imran Khan’s perspectives have frequently shifted or been obscure. Many accuse him of U-turns. What he’d really do in electricity is mostly unclear. He upholds liberalism but in precisely the exact same time appeals to Islamic values and anti-West opinion, particularly in regards to perceived interference in Pakistan’s internal affairs.
He campaigned vocally against US drone strikes against militants from Pakistan’s tribal regions as part of this”war on terror.” He’s criticised some of the Taliban’s violence, but last year his party’s authorities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa state gave $3m (#2.3m) into the infamous Haqqania madrassa. Its mind, Maulana Sami-ul Haq, is Called the”father of the Taliban.” Imran Khan has had to battle taunts he must be known as”Taliban Khan.”
Nonetheless, it’s his effort against corruption and dynastic politics in Pakistan, and also a guarantee to boost a completely different class of”blank” politicians, which appears to have chimed together with his fans. He’s hunted to ride a tide of disillusionment in Pakistan’s old political arrangement, especially among the urban middle class and young Republicans, that are fed up with living in a nation with a market and money on the skid, along with water and electricity supplies in continuous crisis.
The most important goal of his anti-corruption effort was his arch-rival, Nawaz Sharif. The Panama Papers escape in 2015 revealed many Mr. Sharif’s kids had connections to overseas businesses that were supposedly utilized to channel capital and purchase overseas assets. That instant provided Imran Khan along with his big chance – and he captured it.
His effort against the Sharifs watched him threaten to blockade the funds with his fans. Nawaz Sharif was ousted in the office of prime minister in 2017 and is currently behind bars, sentenced to a decade in prison with an anti-corruption court. The Sharifs maintain that the charges are politically motivated. Together with his primary rival down but not out, Imran Khan redoubled his attempts to woo politicians using reliable vote banks into his camp.
Critics say lots of the so-called”electable” were coerced into defecting, fees the army and PTI deny. Mr. Khan rejects persistent claims that the strong army has exploited the survey in support of his effort. He also told the BBC in May:”The present military leader, General Bajwa, is most likely the most pro-democratic person we have ever observed.”
The way he might put on with the army in the longer term remains an open question. If he actually wants to handle some Pakistan’s origin issues, he can find himself on a collision path with the institution, as previous governments have found.
Imran Kahn is Pakistan’s youth darling as they see him as a ray of hope but will he deliver? We will have to wait to see if he does.
What are your thoughts on Imran Khan becoming the PM of Pakistan, let us know in the comments below
