Imran Khan

This article is about the politician and former cricketer. For other people with the same name, see Imran Khan (disambiguation).

Imran Khan HI(C) PP FRCPE
عمران خان
Khan in 2021
19th Prime Minister of Pakistan
In office 18 August 2018 – 10 April 2022
President	Mamnoon Hussain Arif Alvi
Preceded by	Nasirul Mulk (caretaker)
Succeeded by	Shehbaz Sharif
Chairman of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf
In office 25 April 1996 – 2 December 2023
Vice-Chairman	Shah Mahmood Qureshi
Preceded by	Position established
Succeeded by	Gohar Ali Khan
Member of the National Assembly
In office 13 August 2018 – 21 October 2022
Preceded by	Obaidullah Shadikhel
Constituency	NA-95 Mianwali-I
Majority	113,523 (44.89%)
In office 19 June 2013 – 31 May 2018
Preceded by	Hanif Abbasi
Succeeded by	Sheikh Rashid Shafique
Constituency	NA-56 Rawalpindi-VII
Majority	13,268 (8.28%)
In office 10 October 2002 – 3 November 2007
Preceded by	Constituency established
Succeeded by	Nawabzada Malik Amad Khan
Constituency	NA-71 Mianwali-I
Majority	6,204 (4.49%)
Chancellor of the University of Bradford
In office 7 December 2005 – 8 December 2014
Preceded by	Betty Lockwood
Succeeded by	Kate Swann
Personal details
Born	Imran Ahmad Khan Niazi (1952-10-05) 5 October 1952 Lahore, West Punjab, Pakistan
Political party	Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (since 1996)
Spouse(s)	Jemima Goldsmith ​ ( m. 1995; div. 2004) Reham Khan ​ ( m. 2015; div. 2015) Bushra Bibi ( m. 2018)
Children	2
Relatives	Family of Imran Khan
Residence	Bani Gala, Islamabad, Capital Territory Zaman Park, Lahore, Punjab
Education	Keble College, Oxford (B.A.)
Awards	See list
Signature
Nickname(s)	Kaptaan (Captain) Qaidi No. 804 (Prisoner No. 804)
Personal information
Height	6 ft (183 cm)
Batting	Right-handed
Bowling	Right-arm fast
Role	All-rounder
International information
National side	Pakistan (1971–1992)
Test debut (cap 88)	3 June 1971 v England
Last Test	2 January 1992 v Sri Lanka
ODI debut (cap 175)	31 August 1974 v England
Last ODI	25 March 1992 v England
Career statistics
Competition Test ODI FC LA Matches 88 175 382 425 Runs scored 3,807 3,709 17,771 10,100 Batting average 37.69 33.41 36.79 33.22 100s/50s 6/18 1/19 30/93 5/66 Top score 136 102* 170 114* Balls bowled 19,458 7,461 65,224 19,122 Wickets 362 182 1287 507 Bowling average 22.81 26.61 22.32 22.31 5 wickets in innings 23 1 70 6 10 wickets in match 6 0 13 0 Best bowling 8/58 6/14 8/34 6/14 Catches/stumpings 28/– 36/– 117/– 84/–
Medal record Men's Cricket Representing Pakistan ICC Cricket World Cup Winner 1992 Australia and New Zealand ACC Asia Cup Runner-up 1986 Sri Lanka
Source: ESPNcricinfo, 5 November 2014

Template:Imran Khan sidebar Imran Ahmed Khan Niazi (born 5 October 1952) is a Pakistani former cricketer, philanthropist, and politician who served as the 19th prime minister of Pakistan from August 2018 until April 2022. As a cricketer, he captained the Pakistan national cricket team to victory in the 1992 Cricket World Cup. After retiring from cricket, he founded the Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre, Pakistan's first cancer hospital. He is the founder of the political party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and was its chairman from 1996 to 2023.

Born in Lahore, he graduated from Keble College, Oxford. He began his international cricket career in a 1971 Test series against England. He advocated for neutral umpiring during his captaincy. He led Pakistan to its first-ever Test series victories in India and England during 1987. Playing until 1992, he captained the Pakistan national cricket team for most of the 1980s and early 1990s. In addition to achieving the all-rounder's triple of scoring 3,000 runs and taking 300 wickets in Tests, he holds the world record for the most wickets as a captain in Test cricket, along with the second-best bowling figures in an innings. Moreover, he has won the most Player of the Series awards in Test cricket for Pakistan and ranks fourth overall in Test history. In 2009, he was inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame.

In his bachelorhood, he had several relationships and was associated with London's nightlife. His first girlfriend, Emma Sergeant, was, according to him, the one woman he truly loved before his first marriage. He had a relationship with Ana-Luisa (Sita) White, daughter of industrialist Gordon White. A California court ruled Khan to be the father of her daughter Tyrian Jade, though he denied paternity. He dated German MTV host Kristiane Backer, introducing her to Islam. He married Jemima Goldsmith in 1995, had two sons, and divorced in 2004 due to her difficulty adjusting to life in Pakistan. He married British-Pakistani journalist Reham Khan in January 2015, but they divorced in October the same year. He married his spiritual guide Bushra Bibi on 18 February 2018.

He supported General Musharraf's 1999 Pakistani coup d'état. His political career involved perceived closeness to the military establishment, including contacts with several ISI chiefs. He became a member of the National Assembly of Pakistan for the first time in the 2002 election. He contested the 2018 Pakistani general election from five constituencies and became the first in Pakistan's electoral history to win all of them. He was elected prime minister in a PTI-led coalition government. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he launched Pakistan's largest welfare programme. In February 2022, he became the first Pakistani prime minister since 2002 to visit Moscow, arriving on the same day the Russian invasion of Ukraine began. During his premiership, he spoke out against Islamophobia in the Western world. In April 2022, he became the first Pakistani prime minister to be removed from office through a no-confidence motion. He alleged US involvement in his removal, blaming Washington for opposing his foreign policy that sought closer relations with China and Russia.

In October 2022, the Election Commission barred him for one term from the National Assembly over the Toshakhana case. In November, he survived an assassination attempt. In May 2023, he was arrested at the Islamabad High Court during a hearing related to the corruption charges; following the May 9 riots, he was released on protective bail a few days later. He was arrested again in August 2023. He has since been sentenced to 14 years in the Al-Qadir Trust case and, as of December 2024, faced 186 cases across Pakistan. He has alleged that his imprisonment is politically motivated, blaming the post-2022 military establishment and the Shehbaz Sharif government, both of which deny the claim.

Early life and family

Further information: Family of Imran Khan

Khan with his uncle Javed Zaman, who would later become his cricket mentor, c. 1957.

Khan was born in Lahore on 5 October 1952. He is the only son of Ikramullah Khan Niazi, a civil engineer, and his wife, Shaukat Khanum, and has four sisters. Paternally, he is of Pathan origin from the Niazi tribe. His maternal family is from the Burki community, having lived near Jalandhar for centuries before migrating to Pakistan after Independence in 1947.

He attended Aitchison College and Cathedral School in Lahore. He arrived at Royal Grammar School Worcester in England in September 1971 and performed well in cricket there. In 1972, after being turned down by Cambridge University, he was admitted to Keble College, Oxford, where he studied philosophy, politics and economics, graduating in 1975. Paul Hayes, a cricket enthusiast, helped facilitate his entry.

Personal life

Khan had several relationships in his bachelorhood. He was known as a "playboy" who was active in London's nightlife, often visiting Tramp in St James's. One or two of his girlfriends were called "mysterious blondes" in British tabloids. During the 1980s and 1990s, he was regarded as one of the most eligible bachelors.

His first girlfriend, Emma Sergeant, an artist and daughter of British investor Sir Patrick Sergeant, introduced him to socialites. The Times states Emma was the "one woman he truly loved before his first marriage." They met in 1982 and visited Pakistan. She accompanied him everywhere, including a hunting trip to Peshawar and a cricket tour to Australia. She painted his portrait during their relationship at his request. His Chelsea residence, near Sergeant's studio and Tramp, became central to his social life. After long separations, their relationship ended in 1986.

Jonathan Orders introduced him to Susie Murray-Philipson, whom he later invited to Pakistan and had dinner with in 1982. Their relationship did not progress, as Philipson felt out of place and found cultural differences irreconcilable. He also briefly dated Susannah Constantine, whom he met through Lulu Blacker; their relationship lasted about a year. Julia Verdin and Doone Murray were among other women associated with him, with their relationships receiving media attention.

Other women associated with him during this period include Zeenat Aman, Sarah Crawley, Marie Helvin, Stephanie Beacham, Caroline Kellett, Liza Campbell, Goldie Hawn, Sarah Giles, Anastasia Cooke, and Hannah Rothschild. These relationships did not last, as he required residency in Pakistan for a serious, long-term commitment.

Ana-Luisa White, daughter of British industrialist Gordon White and later known as Sita, began her relationship with him in 1986, shortly after his breakup with Emma. The relationship lasted two years, ending when he reportedly wrote that he could not love her as Emma would always be the love of his life. White became pregnant after a final encounter in 1991 and gave birth to a daughter, Tyrian Jade, in June 1992. She later claimed he was the father and kept a framed photograph of him. Tyrian became the subject of a legal dispute in 1997 when a California court ruled him her father after White filed a paternity suit. The ruling followed his failure to respond to the suit or a blood test request. He denied paternity, saying he does not live in California or England and welcomes White to Pakistan to present his side in court. He offered to take a paternity test in Pakistan and said he would accept the decision of the Pakistani courts. After White's death in 2004, Jemima, his wife and a friend of Sita, was named Tyrian's legal guardian in her will. He said Tyrian could join their family in London, leaving the decision to her due to her relationship with his and Jemima's sons.

In August 1992, he began dating Kristiane Backer, a German MTV host; he introduced her to Islam during their nearly three-year relationship.

Khan and Jemima Goldsmith confirmed their engagement on 12 May 1995. The couple said they would marry, with him stating Jemima converted to Islam "through her own convictions" after studying the religion. Both families approved of the match. A spokesperson for her father denied rumours that Jemima was pregnant. On 16 May 1995, the couple married in a brief two-minute Islamic Nikah ceremony in Paris. On 21 June, they had a civil ceremony at the Richmond register office before moving to Lahore. They had two sons, Sulaiman Isa and Kasim. On 22 June 2004, the couple divorced, ending their nine-year marriage as it was "difficult for Jemima to adapt to life in Pakistan."

On 8 January 2015, he married British-Pakistani journalist Reham Khan in a private Nikah ceremony at his Islamabad residence. On 22 October 2015, they announced plans to divorce.

In 2016, media speculated about his possible third marriage, linked to his spiritual ties with the Maneka family of Pakpattan. Reports claimed he visited Pakpattan several times in July to meet Maryam Riaz Wattoo, sister of his spiritual guide Bushra Bibi. He dismissed the claims as "absolutely baseless". Members of the Manika family also denied the rumour. He called the media "unethical" for spreading it, and PTI filed a complaint against the channels involved.

In 2017, PTI member Ayesha Gulalai alleged that he, then party chairman, sexually harassed her. Gulalai said he had sent her "inappropriate text messages", with the first sent in October 2013. He supported Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi's proposal for a special committee to investigate the claims. He said he had not sent "indecent messages" to Gulalai and "challenge[d] the [proposed] committee to find [the indecent texts] if there are any". Khan opposed the proposed ethics committee after its composition emerged, calling it unfair for a government formed body, and said an independent panel should first assess the allegations. He refused to cooperate with the bipartisan committee; PTI filed a defamation suit against Gulalai, which IDS Bulletin described as filed by Khan himself. No inquiry was ultimately conducted, and Gulalai did not publicly release the alleged messages.

On 7 January 2018, the PTI central secretariat said he had proposed to Bushra, but she had not yet accepted. On 18 February 2018, PTI confirmed he had married Bushra. The mufti who conducted the marriage later testified that his nikah was performed twice. He said the first, on 1 January 2018, occurred while Bushra was still in iddat, and alleged he believed marrying on that date would help him become prime minister.

As of 2018, he owned five dogs, including Motu at his Bani Gala estate.

Cricket career

Khan as a test cricketer at a luncheon with Sydney University's Vice-Chancellor John Manning Ward before playing for the university club. Seated: Imran Khan, Chancellor Sir Hermann Black, Coach John Dyson. Ward stands second from left, 1984

Khan made his first-class debut at 16 in Lahore. By the early 1970s, he played for local teams: Lahore A, Lahore B, Lahore Greens, and Lahore. He was part of the University of Oxford Blues Cricket team from 1973 to 1975. Between 1971 and 1976, Khan played English county cricket for Worcestershire and also represented Dawood Industries and Pakistan International Airlines. From 1983 to 1988, he played for Sussex.

Khan made his Test cricket debut against England in June 1971 at Edgbaston. In August 1974, he played his first One Day International (ODI) match, again against England, at Trent Bridge for the Prudential Trophy.

He received the Wetherell Award for leading all-rounder in English first-class cricket in 1976 and 1980. By 1977, he was playing in Kerry Packer's World Series Cricket.

Khan's bowling statistics as a cricketer from 1971 to 1991.

As a bowler, Khan learned reverse swing from Sarfraz Nawaz and later taught it to Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis. From January 1980 to 1988, he took 236 Test wickets at an average of 17.77, including 18 five-wicket hauls and five 10-wicket hauls, with statistics comparing favourably with Richard Hadlee, Malcolm Marshall, Dennis Lillee, Joel Garner and Michael Holding in both average and strike rate. He was the leading Test wicket-taker in 1982. He recorded his best Test figures, taking 8 wickets for 58 runs against Sri Lanka in 1981–82.

Captaincy

In 1982, Khan became captain of the Pakistan national cricket team. Under him, Pakistan won their first Test in England in 28 years at Lord's in 1982. In 1983, he was named a Wisden Cricketer of the Year. During Pakistan's 1982–83 series against India, he took 40 wickets at an average of 13.95. In January 1983, he became the second cricketer, after Ian Botham, to score a century and take 10 wickets in a Test. Next month, he reached a Test bowling rating of 922, the highest International Cricket Council (ICC) rating since World War I, and third in all-time ICC Test bowling. He became the first Pakistani bowler to take 200 Test wickets, with Wisden Cricketers' Almanack noting he "bowled with such venom and fire that no Indian batsman other than Mohinder Amarnath faced him with any confidence." The series caused a stress fracture in his left shin, sidelining him over two years. Initially, he could bat but not bowl; later, he could not play at all. An experimental treatment in London, funded by the Pakistani government, helped him recover by late 1984. He returned under Javed Miandad's captaincy in the 1984–85 home series against Sri Lanka. Afterward, Miandad stepped down, citing limited co-operation from him, who was then reappointed captain.

Khan initiated reforms in cricket umpiring to reduce criticism of Pakistani officials in home series. Writing for The Guardian, Mike Selvey said that "such was his power" that in 1986 he invited Indian umpires VK Ramaswamy and Piloo Reporter to officiate a Test against West Indies, marking the first step in independent umpiring. He later brought England's John Hampshire and John Holder for the home series against India in 1989–90. This led to the 1994 rule requiring one neutral umpire and the 2002 mandate for both umpires to be independent.

In 1987, Khan led Pakistan to its first Test series win in India, followed by its first series victory in England the same year. He retired from international cricket after the 1987 Cricket World Cup. He was asked to return as captain by General Zia-ul-Haq, and he accepted the offer. In 1988, he led Pakistan on a successful West Indies tour. He was named Man of the Series, taking 23 wickets in three Tests. He became the first Asian and eighth non-Australian to win the International Cricketer of the Year in 1989.

As captain, he led Pakistan in 48 Tests (14 wins, 8 losses, 26 draws) and 139 ODIs (75 wins, 59 losses, 1 tie). In Tests, he holds the record for most wickets as captain, second-best innings figures (8/60), most five-wicket hauls in an innings (12), and most ten-wicket match hauls (4).

1992 Cricket World Cup final

Khan presenting the World Cup to the then Prime Minister of Pakistan, Nawaz Sharif, during a dinner held in the team's honour after their win in the 1992 World Cup.

Khan led Pakistan to victory in the 1992 Cricket World Cup. In the final, he top-scored with 72 runs. He brought back Wasim Akram in the 35th over after Allan Lamb and Neil Fairbrother had added 72 runs. Akram dismissed Lamb and Chris Lewis. He claimed the final wicket himself. This was Pakistan's first world cup victory. After the victory, he said,

It was rock-bottom when we lost to South Africa. I told the boys they had to play as if they were cornered tigers. I told them to forget about bowling no-balls and wides, and just go out there and fight.

Retirement

He played his last Test in January 1992 against Sri Lanka and retired after leading Pakistan to victory in the 1992 Cricket World Cup final.

Career stats

See also: List of international cricket five-wicket hauls by Imran Khan

He ended his career with 88 Tests, 126 innings, scoring 3,807 runs at an average of 37.69, including six centuries, 18 fifties, and a highest score of 136. He had the second-highest all-time Test batting average of 61.86 playing at number six in the batting order. As a bowler, he took 362 Test wickets. He has won the most Player of the Series awards for Pakistan in Test cricket, ranking fourth overall in Test history. In ODIs, he played 175 matches, scoring 3,709 runs at an average of 33.41, with a highest score of 102 not out. His best ODI bowling was 6 for 14, the highest ODI innings figures recorded by any bowler in a defeat. He achieved the all-rounder's triple—3,000 runs and 300 wickets—in 75 Tests, becoming among the first four players to reach it. As of 2025, he is one of eleven players to do so, and his 75-Test achievement is the third-fastest ever.

Post-retirement from cricket

After retiring, Khan said he had engaged in ball tampering during county cricket, saying he "occasionally scratched the side of the ball and lifted the seam," and defended it by saying it was a commonplace practice. He announced his return as a domestic league coach in May 2003.

He occasionally appeared as a cricket commentator on Star TV. In 2004, during the Indian cricket team's tour of Pakistan, he appeared as a commentator on TEN Sports' live show, Straight Drive.

On 23 November 2005, Khan was appointed chancellor of the University of Bradford. In 2009, he was inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame. On 26 February 2014, the University of Bradford Union moved a no-confidence motion to remove him for missing all graduation ceremonies since 2010. On 30 November 2014, he stepped down, citing "increasing political commitments," although it was reported that he effectively resigned under pressure.

Philanthropy

Khan served as UNICEF Special Representative for Sports, promoting health and immunisation programmes in countries like Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Thailand. In 1994, he founded Pakistan's first cancer hospital, the Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre, named after his mother, who had died of cancer. He raised funds by touring the country, with most donations coming from common people. He aimed to provide free treatment to underprivileged patients, and as of 2024, 70% of patients receive free care.

Khan fundraising for Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre in Jeddah, 1992

To aid victims of the 2001 Islamabad cloud burst, Khan auctioned his signed 1992 Cricket World Cup bat and match sweater; the bat alone fetched US$20,000. He said these were the last items he had, having earlier auctioned the rest for Shaukat Khanum Hospital.

In December 2005, Khan, then Chancellor of the University of Bradford, signed a memorandum of understanding to establish Namal College in Mianwali as its associate college. Built by the Mianwali Development Trust on land donated by locals, it aimed to tackle unemployment through technical and vocational education. The college opened in 2008.

In 2006, while visiting his children in London, he also worked with the Lord's Taverners cricket charity.

Khan established The Imran Khan Foundation (IKF) in February 2006. In January 2013, IKF launched a Rs30 million relief project for internally displaced persons of the Mehsud tribe from North Waziristan, providing food, winter essentials, and tents to 2,600 families in Tank, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, who had limited government assistance.

Political career prior to premiership

Initial years

Khan at a political rally in Peshawar in 1996

In 1987, President Zia-ul-Haq offered Khan a post in the Pakistan Muslim League (PML), which he declined. In 1993, he was appointed tourism ambassador in the caretaker government of Moeenuddin Ahmad Qureshi for three months until it was dissolved. In late 1994, he joined former ISI chief Hamid Gul and Muhammad Ali Durrani of Pasban, a breakaway of Jamaat-e-Islami, to launch a "pressure group" as a civil society watchdog.

In 1995, Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, fearing a military coup that could make him Prime Minister, responded with punitive measures. State television refused to air archival cricket footage and banned fundraising ads for Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital during Ramadan. Authorities also planted rumours that he was under investigation for embezzlement and tax irregularities. Donations to the hospital halved that year as a result.

On 25 April 1996, he founded the political party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI). Nawaz Sharif invited him to join his party, offering second-in-command position and 30 National Assembly seats; he declined. He ran for the National Assembly in the 1997 election from the constituencies — NA-53 Mianwali and NA-94 Lahore — as a PTI candidate but lost both to the Pakistan Muslim League (N) (PML (N)).

He supported General Musharraf's 1999 Pakistani coup d'état, believing Musharraf would "end corruption and clear out the political mafias." His PTI was among the parties that supported Pervez Musharraf in the 2002 Pakistani referendum. In July 2002, Musharraf's principal secretary Tariq Aziz tried to persuade Khan to join a pro-military alliance, but the meeting ended in acrimony, with Aziz telling him, "You will never win your seat now." Khan participated in the 2002 Pakistani general election and said that if his party did not win a majority, they would consider forming a coalition. He was the only winner from PTI in that election.

Khan in 2007

On 6 May 2005, Hendrik Hertzberg described him as "most directly responsible" for drawing attention in the Muslim world to the alleged desecration of the Qur'an at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base.

In August 2005, Declan Walsh called him a "miserable politician", saying "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."

In March 2006, he was escorted home by police and placed under house arrest after threatening to protest against President George W. Bush during his visit to Pakistan.

Khan tearing his nomination paper for the National Assembly at a press conference; he boycotted the 2008 elections.

On 2 October 2007, as part of the All Parties Democratic Movement, he joined 85 MPs in resigning from Parliament to protest the 2007 Pakistani presidential election, which General Musharraf contested without resigning as army chief. On 3 November 2007, he was placed under house arrest after Musharraf declared a state of emergency; he later escaped from detention. He emerged from hiding on 14 November to join a student protest at the University of the Punjab. At the rally, activists from the Islami Jamiat-e-Talaba, the student wing of Jamaat-e-Islami, restrained him inside a building. He was arrested during the protest and sent to the Central Jail, Dera Ghazi Khan, where he spent a week before release.

He opposed the 2010 military operation in Kala Dhaka.

On 30 October 2011, he addressed over 100,000 supporters at the Minar-e-Pakistan in Lahore, challenging government policies, and calling his movement "not a flood that is coming, but a tsunami." Another gathering of at least 100,000 supporters occurred in Karachi on 25 December 2011.

In August 2012, the Pakistani Taliban issued death threats to him over his march to their tribal stronghold to protest U.S. drone strikes in Pakistan, calling him a "liberal" and "secular" — terms they equated with being an infidel. On 1 October, they withdrew death threats and offered him protection for the rally. They "endorse[d] Imran Khan's plea that drone strikes are against our sovereignty." On 6 October, he led a convoy of 10,000 to protest US drone strikes. The convoy was stopped by hundreds of security personnel just miles from South Waziristan's border. After an hour of failed negotiations, he announced the rally would return to Tank, about 15 kilometres away.

2013 elections

Khan chose the cricket bat as the electoral symbol for his party in the 2013 elections, and it remained as such until 2023

On 21 April 2013, Khan launched his election campaign from Lahore, addressing thousands at The Mall. He announced he would pull Pakistan from the US-led war on terror and said he would work to bring peace to the Pashtun tribal belt. He announced that PTI would introduce a uniform education system aimed at providing equal opportunities for all children. He concluded his campaign in South Punjab's Seraiki belt by addressing rallies in various cities.

On 7 May, four days before the elections, he fell from a lifter while boarding a stage at a rally, sustaining head injuries, and four fractured vertebrae. He ended the campaign by addressing a rally in Islamabad via video link from his hospital bed.

The 2013 Pakistani general election was held on 11 May. The PML (N), headed by Nawaz Sharif, won, while he alleged vote-rigging. The day after the elections, Asad Umar, a leader from his party, announced that Khan had conceded defeat to PML (N). While his party welcomed the vote, he pledged to release a white paper on alleged rigging and announced plans for protests.

His party became the leading party in the Provincial Assembly of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. He nominated Pervez Khattak to lead his party's first provincial government.

In opposition

See also: Inqilab March

Khan became PTI's parliamentary leader in the National Assembly after the 2013 elections. On 31 July 2013, he received a contempt-of-court notice for allegedly describing the superior judiciary as "shameful." The notice was discharged after he told the Supreme Court that his criticism targeted lower-court judicial officers serving as returning officers during the elections.

Khan meets U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry in August 2013 while he was in opposition

He was criticised for supporting Sami-ul-Haq, described as the "Father of the Taliban," and funding his seminary, Darul Uloom Haqqania. He accused the US of undermining peace with the Pakistani Taliban by killing its leader Hakimullah Mehsud in a drone strike in 2013. He announced plans for protests and to block NATO's supply lines to Afghanistan if drone attacks, which he said "fanned fanaticism," continued.

On 11 May 2014, a year after the elections, he demanded the resignation of all Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) members, a new ECP, and strict punishment for those who "stole the mandate of the masses." On 14 August 2014, he led a rally from Lahore to Islamabad, demanding Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's resignation and an investigation into alleged electoral fraud. He and Canadian-Pakistani cleric Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri formed a "de facto" alliance to mobilise supporters for a regime-change campaign against Sharif.

Play Video

Local File

Voice of America reports on Khan-led protest, August 2014

In 2014, then-PTI president Javed Hashmi alleged Khan was instructed by the army to coordinate his protests with Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT). Hashmi accused him of being "influenced by a 'signal' from outside," which The New York Times called "an apparent reference to military intervention." The Inter-Services Public Relations said it backed neither PTI nor PAT. The army acted as mediator between the protesters and the government. In 2016, Hashmi said Khan had "conspired" with "disgruntled elements in the army". In the Routledge Handbook of Contemporary Pakistan, Aparna Pande, a Research Fellow at the Hudson Institute, writes that parts of the army backed the protests; Khan was advised by then ISI chief Zaheer-ul-Islam, and the ISI drafted Qadri to lead them.

On 1 September, protesters led by Qadri and him attempted to storm Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's official residence, triggering violence that left three dead and over 595 injured, including 115 police officers. PTI and PAT protesters also stormed state-run PTV, assaulting staff. Later in September, he urged supporters to burn electricity bills and join civil disobedience. Following the 2014 Peshawar school massacre, he ended his 126-day sit-in on 17 December for national unity.

In March 2015, his party agreed with the Sharif administration to form a judicial commission to probe electoral fraud, a move facilitated by Army Chief General Raheel Sharif. In July, the commission found the elections broadly fair with no systemic rigging. He accepted the commission's findings but said he had not received a copy.

He campaigned against Sharif after the Panama Papers leak in 2016, leading protests and calling for his resignation over corruption allegations.

2018 elections campaign

Khan campaigns for the elections in Sindh while wearing a traditional Sindhi cap and Ajrak in 2017

Khan contested the 2018 Pakistani general election from NA-35 (Bannu), NA-53 (Islamabad-II), NA-95 (Mianwali-I), NA-131 (Lahore-IX), and NA-243 (Karachi East-II). He became the first in Pakistan elections history to contest and win all five constituencies, surpassing Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, who contested four and won three in 1970.

Opposition parties alleged "massive rigging" and military influence in his favour. Nawaz Sharif and PML (N) alleged that the military aligned with the judiciary affected the election outcome in his favour. The Election Commission rejected the allegations. Two days after the 2018 elections, Michael Gahler, chief observer of the European Union Election Observation Mission to Pakistan, said the overall situation of the election was satisfactory.

Nominations and appointments

On 6 August 2018, his party nominated him for prime minister. He designated Asad Umar as finance minister for his prospective government. He nominated Mahmood Khan for Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Usman Buzdar for Chief Minister of Punjab. In Balochistan, he directed his party to back the Balochistan Awami Party, which nominated Jam Kamal Khan as chief minister and Abdul Quddus Bizenjo as speaker.

Prime Minister (2018–2022)

Main article: Premiership of Imran Khan

See also: First 100 days of Imran Khan's premiership and Imran Khan government

Khan (left) is sworn in as Prime Minister, with President Mamnoon Hussain administering the oath of office in 2018.

Khan was sworn in as the 22nd Prime Minister of Pakistan on 18 August 2018 after his party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), won the 2018 election. He initially held the Ministry of Interior portfolio after forming his cabinet.

Domestic policy

Economy

Khan, accompanied by his finance minister Abdul Hafeez Shaikh and other cabinet members, meets US President Donald Trump and his secretary of commerce Wilbur Ross, among others, at the World Economic Forum held in Davos, Switzerland, in 2020

On taking office, he cut spending by reducing PM staff from 524 to 2, and auctioning eight buffaloes and 61 luxury vehicles previously acquired for the PM's office. According to BBC, he was criticised for using a helicopter to commute while promoting austerity.

In June 2020, Bloomberg said that his popularity was falling, citing what it described as a weak economy, inflation, and corruption probes involving his aides.

Pakistan faced a worsening economic crisis near the end of his term. After his no-confidence, economist Atif Mian said Khan inherited a bad economy and left it worse, adding there was "zero increase in average income" with Pakistan still in a balance of payments crisis.

Environment and energy

In July 2018, then Chief Justice of Pakistan, Saqib Nisar, launched a fundraiser for the construction of the Diamer-Bhasha Dam and Mohmand Dam. Khan urged overseas Pakistanis to support Nisar's fundraiser. As of November 2023, the dams fund was Rs17.86 billion.

In September 2018, Khan launched the Plant for Pakistan programme.

In June 2020, Khan attended the signing ceremony for the $2.5 billion Kohala Hydropower Project (1,124 MW). In July 2020, he announced the establishment of 15 national parks under the Protected Areas Initiative. In December 2020, he announced at the Climate Ambition Summit that Pakistan would scrap two coal projects (2,600 MW) and set a target of 60% renewable energy by 2030.

Military appointments

Imran Khan, accompanied by foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi and Chief of Army Staff Qamar Javed Bajwa

In 2018, he appointed Lt. General Asim Munir as Director-General of Inter-Services Intelligence (DG-ISI), who was replaced the following year by Lieutenant General Faiz Hameed. That same year, Khan approved an extension of General Qamar Javed Bajwa's tenure as Chief of Army Staff. At the time, he described Bajwa as a balanced personality who was fully committed to democracy, calling him the "best army chief". In 2021, Khan appointed Zaheer Ahmad Babar as Chief of Air Staff.

In November 2022, Khan said he had offered Bajwa a second extension in March that year amid a no-confidence move against his government. According to ISI chief Lt Gen Nadeem Anjum, Bajwa rejected that offer. In December 2022, Khan said he had committed a "big mistake" by extending Bajwa's tenure in 2019.

Press freedom

In 2019, the Interior Ministry investigated individuals and groups, including journalists, who posted images of the murdered Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi on social media during Mohammad Bin Salman's visit to Pakistan. In December 2021, the International Press Institute sent an open letter to Khan, citing "grave concerns" over the proposed Pakistan Media Development Authority (PMDA) ordinance. A Pakistan Press Foundation report said that he, without providing evidence, referred to journalists as "mafias" and "blackmailers".

Accountability

During the 2020 sugar price surge, Khan ordered an inquiry that implicated government and opposition figures and documented widespread wrongdoing in the sugar industry. In December 2020, Khan said he wanted Nawaz Sharif extradited from London to Pakistan to face trial in the Panama Papers case. In 2021, after the Pandora Papers revealed some of his ministers' offshore holdings, he said any wrongdoing was their "individual acts and they will have to be held accountable". The ICIJ said the documents "contain no suggestion that Khan himself owns offshore companies". Asked about two companies at a similar address, he said he had no link and added that two houses in the same neighbourhood share the address.

The 2022 Cabinet Division yearbook said the Assets Recovery Unit (ARU), established by Khan, helped agencies recover Rs426.4 billion, which was Rs93.9 billion more than total recoveries from 2000 to 2017. The ARU supports law enforcement agencies and does not recover assets directly.

In 2023, The Daily Telegraph reported that Lt. General Asim Munir proposed an investigation into corruption allegations involving Khan's wife, Bushra Bibi, during Khan's tenure in June 2019. Shortly afterward, Munir was removed as Director-General of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). Khan said Munir's proposed investigation was not the reason for his removal.

Social policy

Further information: Sehat Sahulat Program

Gurdwara Darbar Sahib renovated by Khan's government

Khan inaugurated the Kartarpur Corridor on 9 November 2019, providing visa-free access for Indian Sikh pilgrims.

In September 2020, Khan expressed support for public hanging and chemical castration for sex offenders, but said public hanging would be unacceptable internationally and harm trade, so he suggested chemical castration instead. The Council of Islamic Ideology deemed chemical castration un-Islamic, so the punishment was removed from an anti-rape law that was passed in late 2021.

In December 2020, educationist Michael Barber called the Ehsaas Programme his flagship initiative, praising its transparency, multi-sectoral approach, and initiatives like Ehsaas Kafaalat and Nashonuma.

In June 2021, Khan drew criticism when he suggested that the rise in rape cases in Pakistan was linked to women wearing "very few clothes," claiming that such behavior would "have an impact on the men unless they are robots." This comment was criticised by women's rights groups, accusing him of being a "rape apologist." Khan later said the rapist is always solely responsible, the victim never is, and his earlier comments were taken out of context.

COVID-19 pandemic

Further information: Corona Relief Tiger Force

Play Video

Local File

Prime Minister Khan calls for global debt relief amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, April 2020

On 17 March 2020, Khan addressed the nation for the first time regarding COVID-19 in Pakistan. He ruled out a complete lockdown, citing extreme poverty. After he ruled out a lockdown again on 22 March 2020, the Pakistan Army took action at the request of the provinces, imposing a nationwide lockdown within 24 hours. Analyst Ayesha Siddiqa said he appeared confused and reliant on a military that made key decisions without him.

Khan elevated the status of the construction sector to that of an industry and provided incentives such as tax breaks, sales tax reduction in coordination with provinces, and a subsidy of Rs30 billion to the Naya Pakistan Housing & Development Authority. He said that investors in the industry would not be asked about their source of income for the year and removed withholding tax for all construction sectors except cement and steel. Additionally, capital gains tax was withdrawn for homeowners selling houses.

Khan launched Pakistan's largest welfare programme, distributing a lump sum of Rs12,000 to 10 million low-income citizens under the Ehsaas Programme.

Khan also adopted a smart lockdown strategy, which used military technology for tracking and tracing COVID-19 cases, targeting specific virus hotspots instead of implementing a nationwide lockdown. He said that strict lockdowns would devastate Pakistan's economy and lead to starvation.

Khan called for debt relief for developing nations during the pandemic, a proposal that gained support from the United Nations and several African countries.

Foreign policy

See also: List of international prime ministerial trips made by Imran Khan

Khan with US President Donald Trump at the White House, July 2019

President Donald Trump tweeted in November 2018 that he would cut billions in aid to Pakistan, saying it had not done "a damn thing for us." Khan responded that U.S. aid was a "minuscule" $20 billion, while Pakistan had lost 75,000 lives and over $123 billion fighting the "US war on terror." Khan also said that Pakistan had provided supply routes to U.S. forces, asking, "Can Mr Trump name another ally that gave such sacrifices?" He later told the US that Pakistan would no longer act as its "hired gun."

After the 2019 Pulwama attack in Indian-held Kashmir, India blamed Pakistan. Khan said Pakistan was not involved in the attack and authorised the military to respond with force to any Indian aggression. After India's 2019 Balakot airstrike, Pakistan carried out Operation Swift Retort, during which Indian pilot Abhinandan Varthaman was captured and later released on his order as a gesture aimed at de-escalation. Khan declined to engage with India after the August 2019 Revocation of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir, and twice denied permission for Narendra Modi's flight to cross Pakistani airspace.

Khan supported Turkey during the 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria. He supported the Afghan peace process and facilitated trade by inaugurating a 24/7 border crossing with Afghanistan. In 2019, he was named in the Time 100 list of most influential people. In June 2020, addressing the National Assembly of Pakistan, he called Osama bin Laden a shaheed (martyr), drawing opposition criticism. His visit to Saudi Arabia aimed to address tensions arising from Pakistan's decision not to support the Saudi-led intervention in the Yemeni civil war.

Khan met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow just hours after Russia's invasion of Ukraine began.

In February 2022, Khan became the first Pakistani prime minister in two decades to visit Moscow to discuss economic and energy cooperation. A video showed him saying, "What a time I have come...so much excitement," which coincided with the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The visit was criticised by the United States. Khan discussed "economic and energy cooperation" with Russian president Vladimir Putin, including development of the Pakistan Stream gas pipeline. Khan said the visit was pre-planned and was intended to maintain neutrality in global alliances. At a UN General Assembly emergency session, Pakistan abstained from condemning Russia, with him calling for de-escalation and respect for international law. He expressed criticism of Western envoys who urged Pakistan to support the UN resolution. After his ouster, Khan said the visit had secured offers of discounted oil and wheat. The Russian ambassador said no formal agreements were signed.

FATF compliance

In June 2022, two months after his ouster, FATF removed Pakistan from the grey list, citing completion of the 2018 and 2021 action plans. Khan attributed the outcome to his government, especially former energy minister Hammad Azhar, who led the FATF Coordination Committee. The First Shehbaz Sharif government also said that it deserved credit, while The Express Tribune said Khan's government had "done most of the work."

Stance regarding Islamophobia

Main article: International Day to Combat Islamophobia

Play Video

Local File

While addressing the Seventy-fifth session of the United Nations General Assembly in 2020, Prime Minister Khan suggested an international day to combat Islamophobia.

In September 2019, Khan, along with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, announced an English-language TV channel to address Islamophobia. In October 2020, Khan objected to the spread of Islamophobia, urging Facebook to ban related content and accusing French President Emmanuel Macron of attacking Islam for supporting cartoons of Prophet Muhammad. In 2021, Khan called on Muslim countries to press the West to criminalise insults against Prophet Muhammad, likening it to laws against Holocaust denial. He said, "We need to explain why this hurts us, when in the name of freedom of speech they insult the honour of the prophet... when 50 Muslim countries will unite and say this, and say that if something like this happens in any country, then we will launch a trade boycott on them and not buy their goods, that will have an effect." In March 2022, Pakistan led a UN resolution to designate 15 March as the International Day to Combat Islamophobia.

Removal from office

Further information: 2022 Pakistani constitutional crisis and No-confidence motion against Imran Khan

In August 2023, The Intercept published leaked Cypher No. I-0678 showing that, on 7 March 2022, US State Department officials, including Donald Lu, raised concern over his stance on the Russian invasion of Ukraine. According to the cipher, as reported by Pakistan's ambassador, the U.S. said that "all will be forgiven in Washington" if he was removed in the no-confidence motion and indicated the possibility of economic and political isolation if he stayed. After publication, the U.S. denied trying to remove him, saying its concerns were about policy, not leadership.

On 8 March 2022, opposition parties filed a no-confidence motion against him, alleging economic mismanagement such as — rising inflation, high debt, a weakening currency —and foreign policy. By 18 March, some party members had defected and two coalition partners joined the opposition, causing him to lose his National Assembly majority.

On 27 March, he showed the cipher at a rally, alleging foreign interference and US involvement in his removal. The National Security Council (NSC) also expressed concerns about foreign interference. On 3 April 2022, President Arif Alvi, acting on his advice, dissolved the National Assembly after the Deputy Speaker rejected the no-confidence motion. The opposition called the rejection "unconstitutional" and petitioned the Supreme Court. On 10 April, he sent the cipher to the Supreme Court, despite legal warnings about potential breaches of constitutional oaths and the Official Secrets Act. He was ousted after a Supreme Court ruling on 10 April deemed the rejection of the no-confidence motion illegal, with the vote passing to remove him, making him the first Pakistani PM ousted by no-confidence.

Post-premiership

See also: 2022–2025 Pakistan political unrest

After his removal, Khan again alleged US involvement, stating that the US opposed his foreign policy that strengthened ties with China and Russia. In November 2022, when asked about the alleged conspiracy to remove him, he said it was "behind me" and said he wanted Pakistan to maintain good relations with all countries, particularly the United States. He said, "The Pakistan I want to lead must have good relationships with everyone, especially the United States. Our relationship with the US has been as of a master-servant relationship, or a master-slave relationship, and we've been used like a hired gun. But for that I blame my own governments more than the US."

Misogynistic remark

In a 2022 speech, Khan referenced a clip of Maryam Nawaz repeatedly mentioning him. He said: "Someone sent me a clip on social media of Maryam's speech...she took my name so many times and with so much passion...Maryam, please be careful, your husband might get upset." According to Dawn, his remarks followed her repeated tirades against him and Bushra Bibi. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan condemned Khan's remarks, saying they "plumbed the depths of misogyny" and demanded an apology to Maryam and all women.

Legal matters (2022–present)

Further information: Arrest of Imran Khan, Imprisonment of Imran Khan, and 2023 Pakistani protests

The First Shehbaz Sharif government filed the Toshakhana case against Khan in August 2022, alleging he failed to disclose official gifts and their sale proceeds to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), and did not declare the proceeds for tax purposes.

Khan reportedly retained 58 gifts, 14 valued over Rs 14,000 each. On 8 September, he rejected the allegations and asked the ECP to dismiss the case, saying all purchases were lawfully declared in his tax returns and wealth statements. Hearings were delayed as his legal team sought extensions.

On 21 October 2022, the ECP disqualified Khan under Article 63(1)(p) of the Constitution, ruling he submitted a false statement and incorrect asset declaration for 2020–21. A four-member bench unanimously found he had misled officials about Toshakhana gifts and ordered criminal proceedings under the Election Act, 2017.

Play Video

Local File

Khan provides his perspective on the May 9 riots in July 2023.

Following an arrest warrant from the district and sessions court in Islamabad, the Islamabad Police and Lahore Police moved to arrest Khan on 14 March 2023. On 9 May, he was arrested at the Islamabad High Court in connection with the Al-Qadir Trust case. The case alleges that Khan and his wife, Bushra, received land worth billions from Malik Riaz in exchange for a deal that caused the national exchequer to lose Rs50 billion (£190 million). The funds, recovered by the UK's National Crime Agency, were meant for the national treasury but were used to pay fines on Riaz for acquiring government land below market rates. The couple, sole trustees of the Al-Qadir Trust, are accused of benefiting, including acquiring 458 kanals for Al-Qadir University in Jhelum.

His arrest triggered the May 9 riots, with PTI supporters allegedly attacking military and government installations. The Supreme Court of Pakistan declared the arrest illegal, citing the violation of judicial sanctity by paramilitary forces. On 12 May, he received protective bail, which barred re-arrest on the same charges for two weeks.

On 5 August 2023, he was arrested again and sentenced to three years after being found guilty of misusing his premiership to buy and sell state gifts received abroad, valued over 140 million rupees. On 29 August 2023, an appeals court suspended his corruption conviction and prison term, granting him bail. A special court ordered that he remain in jail in the cypher case, in which he was accused of leaking state secrets and violating the Official Secrets Act. Since then, he has been held in Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi, where the special court conducts his trial.

In August 2023, following the Supreme Court's order on his complaint regarding detention conditions, the government said that his meals included bread, omelette, curd, tea, fruits, vegetables, pulses, rice, and desi mutton cooked in ghee, and that his cell was cleaned daily.

On 30 January 2024, he was convicted in the cypher case and sentenced to 10 years' imprisonment. He said the charges were politically motivated. The next day, he was convicted and sentenced to 14 years in the Toshakhana case for unlawfully selling state gifts received by him and his wife, Bushra, as prime minister. The sentence was suspended on 1 April, pending a court decision after Eid. On 3 February, he and his wife were sentenced to seven years and fined 500,000 rupees each in a criminal case over allegations that Bushra had not completed her Iddat before marrying Khan in 2018.

On 30 May 2024, he told the Supreme Court he was in solitary confinement with restricted meetings with lawyers and family. In June, the government said that his cell had a walking area, cooler, television, exercise equipment, and a separate kitchen, and that he could meet his legal team and family. It submitted photos of the cell and a meeting with his lawyers.

On 3 June 2024, the Islamabad High Court overturned his cypher case conviction. He remained in prison due to other convictions and pending charges. On 13 July, his marriage case conviction was overturned, but he remained in prison after bail was cancelled in a separate May 9 riots case.

In June 2024, the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention called for his release, saying his detention was arbitrary and politically motivated. In a July interview with The Sunday Times from prison, he said he is held in a small "death cell" usually "reserved for terrorists". In September 2024, Amnesty International said it had "noted a pattern of weaponisation of the legal system to keep him detained and away from political activity" and called for his immediate release. In October 2024, authorities said he undergoes a medical examination every two weeks and no health issues have been observed.

On 8 October 2024, Pakistani police charged him with attempted murder over a police officer's death during his supporters' protests in Islamabad. On 22 November 2024, the IHC granted him bail in the Toshakhana case, but he remained in jail due to other cases. On 24 November, Khan's supporters attempted nationwide protests demanding his release. Since the 2022 no-confidence vote, he has been named in 186 legal cases across Pakistan, as reported in December 2024. On 17 January 2025, he was sentenced to 14 years' imprisonment by an accountability court in the Al-Qadir Trust case. On 21 August 2025, the SCP granted him bail in eight 9 May riot cases; however, he remained jailed due to his Al-Qadir Trust case sentence.

On 21 December 2025, he was sentenced to 17 years' imprisonment and fined Rs16.4 million in the Toshakhana-II case. The court found that a Bulgari jewellery set gifted by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, valued at about Rs80 million, was acquired by Khan for Rs2.9 million. It credited time served and described the sentence as lenient due to his old age.

In February 2026, fourteen former international cricket captains appealed to Pakistan's government, expressing "profound concern" over reports on Khan's health and prison conditions.

Khan's views regarding imprisonment

Khan says his imprisonment is politically motivated, alleging involvement by the Pakistan Armed Forces (the Establishment) and Shehbaz Sharif's government. Both the military and government denied the allegations; the military called them "fabricated and malicious" while Sharif termed them "blatant lies". In June 2024, appearing before the Supreme Court via video from jail, he said Pakistan is under "undeclared martial law". In August 2024, he said the ISI controls all matters of his imprisonment and has made his jail conditions harsher.

Assassination attempt

Main article: Attempted assassination of Imran Khan

Khan speaking to media at Shaukat Khanum hospital after treatment

On 3 November 2022, Khan was shot in the leg in an assassination attempt in Wazirabad while leading a march to Islamabad demanding early elections. One of his supporters died in the attack. The alleged perpetrator, Muhammad Naveed, was overpowered by a supporter of Khan, throwing off his aim. Naveed said he acted alone, targeting him because he believed Khan was misleading the people. Khan blamed the incumbent government—Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah, and Major General Faisal Naseer—for the assassination plot but provided no evidence. Government and military officials denied involvement. Federal Information Minister Maryam Aurangzeb questioned how Khan could demand resignations before any investigation. The Inter-Services Public Relations called the allegations baseless and irresponsible. Sanaullah also rejected them as grievous.

2024 Pakistani general election

In December 2023, he nominated Gohar Ali Khan to replace him as PTI chairman, with Gohar being elected unopposed. Later that month, the ECP rejected his nomination papers for the 2024 Pakistani general election on the grounds that he was "convicted by the court of law and has been disqualified". Before the elections, his name was barred from the media, and TIME reported that constituency boundaries were redrawn to allegedly benefit his opponents.

A PTI official said he was allowed to vote by postal ballot from prison. He issued an AI-generated message urging supporters to celebrate the electoral win, in which at least 90 candidates backed by him, all of whom were forced to run as independents, won seats. PTI chairman Gohar Ali Khan said Khan directed PTI-backed independents to form governments in the Centre, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Punjab. Gohar said Khan told his party to sit in opposition nationally rather than join a coalition with rival parties, including the Pakistan Muslim League (N) and Pakistan Peoples Party.

University of Oxford Chancellor candidacy

In August 2024, Zulfi Bukhari said he submitted an application for Khan to contest the University of Oxford Chancellor election. On 16 October 2024, university officials disqualified Khan from the race based on established exclusion criteria, accepting 38 of over 40 applicants. They cited his prior conviction and active political role, inconsistent with the position's requirements.

Wealth and assets

In his 2003 statement to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), Khan declared his home in Zaman Park, Lahore, an Islamabad apartment, 39 kanals in Islamabad, 530 kanals in Khanewal, and a share in 363 kanals of inherited agricultural land.

In a 2011 Financial Times interview, Khan said he bought a penthouse in South Kensington in 1983 for £110,000 and sold it in 2003 to buy land in Islamabad.

In 2017, the ECP reported that Khan's 300-kanal Bani Gala residence in Islamabad was valued at Rs. 750 million (Template:PKRConvert/out), with other assets including furniture worth Rs. 0.6 million (Template:PKRConvert/out) and livestock. In 2020, the ECP reported that he declared assets worth Rs80.6 million, including a six-kanal plot in Mohra Noori (Rs0.5 million) and five inherited plots in Mianwali, Bhakkar, Sheikhupura, and Khanewal. He sold property in Ferozewala for Rs70 million and bought two Shahrah-e-Dastoor apartments for Rs10.19 million. Khan held Rs50.66 million in a bank account, Rs10.99 million in cash, and four foreign currency accounts with £518, $328,760, $1,470, and an empty euro account. He also declared four goats worth Rs200,000.

In his 2024 election nomination papers, Khan declared over Rs90 million in bank accounts, more than $300,000 in a foreign currency account, and over a dozen properties, mostly inherited, including agricultural land and his Zaman Park residence. He paid Rs11.97 million for a Shahrah-e-Dastoor apartment and declared Rs11.47 million for his Bani Gala residence. He reported owning no vehicle.

Taxes

The News International reported that Khan paid nearly Rs4.7 million in taxes between 1981 and 2017, with exemptions in several years. In January 2022, the Federal Board of Revenue's 2019 tax directory said that he paid Rs9.8 million in taxes that year. In 2022, his income rose to Rs185.68 million due to the sale of a watch gifted by a foreign dignitary; the year before, it was just over Rs7 million. For the fiscal year ending 30 June 2023, he paid Rs15.59 million in taxes, and his total declared assets were Rs315.95 million.

Political positions

Khan speaking at the Chatham House in London, 2012.

In November 1999, Khan condemned the UN for failing to halt Russian "atrocities" in Chechnya.

After the 2003 invasion of Iraq began, Khan participated in a protest in Hyde Park, London, saying: "The fear is that this is not going to be the last war; first it was Afghanistan, now it's Iraq, and if the hawks in Washington have their way, then it's going to be some other country very soon."

A January 2010 leaked US diplomatic cable released by WikiLeaks revealed that US Ambassador to Pakistan Anne W. Patterson met Khan at his residence, where he criticised the US for its "dangerous" policies, including drone operations.

In 2011, Khan became the first Pakistani dignitary to demand an official apology from the Government of Pakistan to the people of Bangladesh for the Pakistan Army's atrocities during the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971. He said he had initially supported the operation due to Pakistan's lack of independent media but later learned the truth from Bengali friends in England, adding that Pakistan must learn from past mistakes and not repeat them in Balochistan or the tribal areas.

Play Video

Local File

Prime Minister Khan's message on the 25th Memorial Day of the Srebrenica Genocide, 2020

He has described himself as a pacifist and anti-war and has opposed military interventions, especially in Afghanistan, criticising Pakistan's role in the U.S.-led war on terror. He has opposed the Iraq War, the Russian Invasion of Ukraine, the Gaza genocide, and the Israeli invasion of Lebanon.

In 2013, Khan proposed secret talks between India and Pakistan to resolve the Kashmir issue, saying open negotiations risk being subverted by vested interests on both sides.

In 2014, when the Pakistani Taliban announced armed struggle against Ismailis and the Kalash people, Khan described "forced conversions as un-Islamic." He also condemned the "forced conversion" of Hindu girls in Sindh.

Public image

In the 1970s and 1980s, Khan attracted media attention for his physical appearance. In the 1980s, he sported a "playboy" image in the British press for his exploits on the London party circuit, though he said he never consumed liquor. In the early 1990s, the British media called him the Sexiest Man Alive. He was known to millions of cricket fans as the Lion of Lahore.

In 1996, The Wall Street Journal said he used populist rhetoric, blending anti-elite messages with religious appeals. His criticism of Westernised Pakistani elites contrasted with his privileged upbringing and western "jet-setter" lifestyle. He said of his past: "I have never claimed to be an angel. I am a humble sinner." In a 2006 interview, Peter Lloyd described his transformation as a "playboy to puritan U-turn," leaving many scratching their heads in wonder. In 2007, Der Spiegel compared him to Franz Beckenbauer for his popularity and influence in Pakistan. In 2018, Reuters described him as a Pakistani cricket icon and former London playboy who had "transformed himself into a pious, firebrand nationalist".

Imran Khan signs autographs for supporters, 2009

In June 2011, a Pew Research Center poll showed him with a 68% approval rating, higher than Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gillani's 37% and President Asif Ali Zardari's 11%. That year, The Washington Post described him as an underdog, saying he "often sounds like a pro-democracy liberal but is well known for his coziness with conservative Islamist parties." H. M. Naqvi called him a "sort of a Ron Paul figure," noting "there is no taint of corruption and there is his anti-establishment message."

His perceived sympathy for the Taliban and criticism of the US-led war on terror led critics to label him "Taliban Khan." He said, "I've been called Taliban Khan for supporting the tribal Pashtuns and I've been called part of a Jewish conspiracy to take over Pakistan. I am of course neither."

In 2012, Pankaj Mishra, writing for The New York Times, characterised him 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 favoured monikers for him." Mishra concluded, "like all populist politicians, he 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."

After the 2013 election, Mohammed Hanif, writing for The Guardian, said that he had support among the educated middle class, but Pakistan's main problem was that it did not have enough educated urban middle-class citizens.

Khan addressing an Interfaith Christmas Dinner in 2014

An August 2018 Gallup Pakistan survey found 52% of Pakistanis believed his tenure as Prime Minister would be better than the previous government. In a 2019 International Republican Institute poll, 40% of respondents rated his performance "good" and 17% "very good." A 2021 Ipsos Pakistan survey found 55% of respondents said Imran Khan government was worse than they expected. In a 2022 Gallup Pakistan poll, 48% of respondents had a negative view of his performance, while 36% held a favourable opinion. Another Gallup Pakistan survey, conducted after his vote-of-no confidence, found 57% of respondents were happy about his removal from office, while 43% were angry. A February 2023 Gallup Pakistan survey, conducted after the end of his premiership, found that 61% of Pakistanis held a good opinion of him.

His arrest and imprisonment in August 2023 angered many in Indian-administered Kashmir.

According to a January 2024 Bloomberg survey of 12 Pakistani financial professionals, Khan was the "top pick" to run the country's economy.

Khan has been nominated twice for the Nobel Peace Prize. He was nominated in 2019 for his endeavours to foster peace across South Asia. In 2025, he was nominated by the Norwegian political party Partiet Sentrum and the advocacy organisation Pakistan World Alliance for his contributions to human rights and democratic values.

Relationship with the military

Several news reports and scholarly works have described his political career as marked by a perceived closeness to Pakistan's military establishment. According to Christopher Clary, Assistant Professor of Political Science at the State University of New York-Albany, he entered politics in the mid-1990s in open alliance with former Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) chief Hamid Gul. In 2012, author Fatima Bhutto criticised him for "incredible coziness not with the military but with dictatorship," accusing him of defending General Zia-ul-Haq's legacy and mentioning his support for Pervez Musharraf's 2002 referendum.

He was also close to former ISI chief Ahmed Shuja Pasha. Clary said that during the 2014 Tsunami March and sit-in, there were widespread allegations of involvement by then ISI chief Zaheer-ul-Islam. Historian Ian Talbot wrote that his role in the 2014 protests was contentious. Talbot stated that he "denied that he was a military cat's paw", which he said conflicted with former PTI president Javed Hashmi's claim that the protests were inspired by Pasha. Talbot said that his actions, "if not sinister, were reckless", threatening hopes of rebalancing civil–military relations in Pakistan. He stated that these actions strengthened military authority over civilian power, and that "the army rather than the democratic forces had clearly emerged as a winner in the political crisis that some believed it had secretly orchestrated".

According to Mohammad Waseem, Professor of Political Science at the Lahore University of Management Sciences, his populist rise was enabled by the military establishment, which sought to counter the PPP and PML (N). Waseem said he was cultivated by the establishment as an alternative force, with the PTI functioning as a "shadow" Muslim League to attract electables before the 2018 election. Waseem said that he appealed to middle-class demands to end dynastic politics and came to power not through mass mobilisation, but military support. He added that he was portrayed at home and abroad as the military's preferred candidate, fuelling opposition claims that he was "selected" rather than elected.

US diplomat Theodore Craig, in Pakistan and American Diplomacy, wrote that after the 2018 elections the United States avoided pushing for an "unblemished election" or rejecting "antidemocratic manipulations", saying that challenging "the military's Imran Khan project" would not have changed the government but could have jeopardised prospects for progress in Afghanistan.

In 2024, The New York Times wrote that Lt. Gen. Faiz Hameed, a former ISI chief, was an ally of his. In 2024, Arab News wrote that Khan was widely believed to have risen to power in 2018 with military backing. Arab News said that after his 2022 ouster, Hameed was widely believed to have advised him as PTI openly criticised the army and its senior leadership. Since then, Khan has campaigned against the military, blaming it for failing to stop the no-confidence motion that removed him.

Ashok Swain, Professor of Peace and Conflict Research at Uppsala University, Sweden, wrote that his challenges and accusations against the military are unique in Pakistan's history. Swain said he became the military's strongest critic, with potential to reform its historically unchecked power. His approach has divided allies and the military but, according to Swain, "mobilised a new generation of politically aware Pakistanis, including women and youth who previously shunned politics".

In a 2025 book, author Dinkar Prakash Srivastava wrote that Khan enjoyed military patronage and "colluded" with it against Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. He wrote that the army "paved the way" for his 2018 election victory by easing out Sharif's government before the end of its term. Khan's relations with the military began to deteriorate in 2021 over the appointment of the ISI chief. After his ouster in 2022, Khan blamed army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa and criticised the military leadership, including General Asim Munir and the ISPR. Srivastava wrote that if Khan sought to divide the top military leadership, it "backfired spectacularly" as the army "does not tolerate interference" in its internal affairs, and that Khan "found himself accidentally thrust into the role of an anti-establishment hero", despite owing his political career to military patronage.

In December 2025, Mohammed Hanif wrote that early in his political career, Khan found out that "the road to power in Pakistan always passed through the army headquarters," and they helped him rise by sidelining his opponents. After falling out with them, his name and image were suppressed on television, and his access to family and lawyers was restricted.

In popular culture

See also: Category:Cultural depictions of Imran Khan

During his cricketing days, he appeared in commercials for Pepsi Pakistan, Brooke Bond tea, Thums Up, and the Indian soap Cinthol. Dev Anand offered him a role in his 1990 Bollywood sports action-thriller Awwal Number as a declining cricket star, but he refused, citing his lack of acting skills. In 2014, Canadian rock band Nickelback released the politically themed single "Edge of a Revolution", featuring a brief clip of a PTI rally with party flags and a poster of him.

Chacha Nooruddin, known as Captain Chappal, gifted a pair of specially crafted Peshawari chappals to him for his 2015 wedding. The double-soled design had existed for years, but the traditional Peshawari chappal became iconic as his preferred footwear.

In the 2021 Indian film 83, about the 1983 Cricket World Cup, he is portrayed by actor Chunky Panday.

Awards and honours

Main article: List of awards and honours received by Imran Khan

Authorship

In the late 1980s, Khan served as editor of The Cricketer, a London-based cricket magazine. Khan has written opinion pieces for Outlook, The Guardian, and the BBC. Khan's 2011 autobiography, Pakistan: A Personal History, covers his move from cricket into politics and discusses his philanthropic work. In 2021, Khan penned a CNN op-ed advocating conservation and restoration of damaged natural ecosystems.

Khan's publications include:

• West and East (Macmillan, 1975)
• Imran: The Autobiography of Imran Khan (Pelham, 1983)
• Imran Khan's Cricket Skills (Hamlyn, 1989)
• Indus Journey: A Personal View of Pakistan (Chatto & Windus, 1991)
• All Round View (Mandarin, 1992)
• Warrior Race: A Journey Through the Land of the Tribal Pathans (Chatto & Windus, 1993)
• Pakistan: A Personal History (Bantam Press, 2011)
• Main Aur Mera Pakistan (Orient, 2014)

See also

• Electoral history of Imran Khan
• Imran Khan Cricket Stadium
• Goldsmith family
• List of sportsperson-politicians
• 2011 Minar-e-Pakistan PTI Jalsa

External links

• Imran Khan on Twitter
• Imran Khan at ESPNcricinfo
• Column archive at The Guardian
• Imran Khan's journey from cricketing Playboy to Politician – Journeyman Pictures
• 1990s Interview, Cricketer Imran Khan at Home – thekinolibrary
• Portrait of Imran Khan by Emma Sergeant
• "Stop fighting and start talking" (video). NBC News. 14 December 2011.

Sporting positions
Preceded by Zaheer Abbas	Captain of the Pakistan National Cricket Team 1982–1983	Succeeded by Sarfraz Nawaz
	Captain of the Pakistan National Cricket Team 1985–1987	Succeeded by Abdul Qadir
Preceded by Abdul Qadir	Captain of the Pakistan National Cricket Team 1989–1992	Succeeded by Javed Miandad
Party political offices
New office	Chairman of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf 1996–2023	Succeeded by Gohar Ali Khan
Political offices
Preceded by Nasirul Mulk (Caretaker)	Prime Minister of Pakistan 2018–2022	Succeeded by Shehbaz Sharif
Academic offices
Preceded by Betty Lockwood	Chancellor of the University of Bradford 2005–2014	Succeeded by Kate Swann