Daily Times

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman and now Prime Minister, Imran Khan, is a name that needs no introduction in Pakistan.

The cricketer-turned-politician is well-reputed among the masses, and is internationally recognised for being the only Pakistani cricket captain to win World Cup 1992.

Imran Ahmad Khan Niazi was born in 1952 in Lahore and got his early education from Aitchison, Worcester and later at Keble College, Oxford.

He started playing cricket at age of 13 and even captained the oxford’s cricket team and then later for the cricket club in Worcestershire. He made his debut for Pakistan national cricket team against England at the age of 18 in 1971.

Khan got married to Jemima Goldsmith, daughter of late financier Sir James Goldsmith in 1995. But their marriage did not last long due to personal reasons and ended in 2004.

Apart from being a true champion in cricket, he started his political career after forming a political party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf shortly after his marriage to Jemima in late 1990s.

He also established Shaukat Khanum Cancer Hospital in Lahore in the 90s in memory of his late mother, and the hospital now is home to cancer patients from across the country.

In Elections 2018, Khan’s party not only bagged majority of the seats in the National Assembly, he himself managed to win 5 out of 5 seats he contested from.

Details of constituencies he won from

NA-53 Islamabad: Imran won with 92,891 votes while former Prime Minister ShahidKhaqan Abbas managed to get 44,314 votes.

NA-35 Bannu: Imran won with 24,317 votes defeating MMA candidate Akram Durrani, who had 22,514 votes.

NA-43 Karachi: Imran won with 91,358 votes with a heavy margin against MQM-P’s Ali Raza Abidi, who got only 24,082 votes.

NA-95 Mianwali: Imran defeated PML-N candidate Obaidullah Shadikhel in his home town by gaining 162,499 votes. The PML-N candidate bagged just 49,505 votes.

NA-131 Lahore: Imran gained 84,313 votes and won by close margin against PML-N’s Khawaja Saad Rafique, who got 83,633 votes.  This was, hands down, the toughest battle for Imran this elections, and the win margins were few and far between too.

PM Imran’s career has been decorated. He has won major accolades as a sportsman and as a philanthropist.

Awards and achievements

Sports – Apart from being the World Cup 1992 winning captain, Khan also received a Hilal-e-Imtiaz and a Pride of Performance award in 1983. He was also inducted in the International Cricket Council (ICC) Hall of Fame in 2010.

Philanthropy – Imran Khan established the Shaukat Khanum Cancer Hospital and Research Centre to combat the disease of cancer, while he also serves as the president of Namal College in Mianwali. He has also served as the UNICEF special representative for sports.

Moreover, Khan is a recipient of Humanitarian award and Asian sports awards in 2007, while he also received Jinnah award in 2011.

And now he is the Prime Minister of Pakistan. Do you think he will be able to keep the promises he has made throughout his political career?