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Family of Imran Khan

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The Khan family
Imran Khan
Imran Khan
Imran Khan
Place of originMianwali, Punjab, Pakistan
Connected familiesBurki, Goldsmith

The family of Imran Khan (Urdu: خاندان عمران خان), a Pakistani politician, former captain of Pakistan cricket team and public figure, includes immediate family members and distant relatives from both the paternal and maternal sides. Khan was born on 25 November 1952 in Lahore to father Ikramullah Khan Niazi, a civil engineer, and mother Shaukat Khanum.[1] He grew up as the only son in the family, with four sisters. The family are ethnically Pathans of Punjab. Paternally, Khan belongs to the Niazi tribe which has long been settled in Mianwali in northwestern Punjab.[2][3] Khan's mother hailed from the Burki tribe of Basti Ghuzan, Jalandhar that had migrated a few centuries ago from South Waziristan in the tribal areas of northwest Pakistan.[1] Khan's maternal family has produced several great cricketers, the most prominent of whom are Javed Burki and Majid Khan.[2]

From 1995 to 2004, Imran Khan was married to Jemima Khan, a British writer and activist, and member of the influential Goldsmith family of England. They have two sons from the marriage, Sulaiman Khan (born 1996) and Qasim Khan (born 1999).

Immediate family

Parents

Khan's father, Ikramullah Khan Niazi, was a civil engineer who graduated from the Imperial College, London in 1946.[1] He served as a board member of the Shaukat Khanum Memorial Trust hospital during his later years.[4]

Khan's mother, Shaukat Khanum, was a housewife. She died in 1985 of cancer. The personal experience of seeing his mother diagnosed with cancer, which became the cause of her death, motivated Khan to build a cancer hospital in Pakistan where those who could not afford expensive care could be treated. In 1994, the Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital & Research Centre was founded by Khan in Lahore, and named in memory of his mother.[5][6]

Siblings

Khan has four sisters, namely Rubina Khanum, Aleema Khanum, Uzma Khanum and Rani Khanum.[7]

Khan's elder sister, Rubina Khanum, is an alumnus of the Lahore School of Economics and held a senior post at the United Nations.[7][4]

Aleema Khanum[8] is an entrepreneur and philanthropist who is the founder of a Lahore-based textile buying house, CotCom Sourcing (Pvt.) Ltd.[9][10] She graduated with an MBA from the Lahore University of Management Sciences in 1989.[9] Her textile buying house has served textile retailers and agents across the globe, and maintains representative offices in Karachi and New York.[11][12] Aleema served as marketing director for the Shaukat Khanum Memorial Trust, and played an instrumental role in fundraising efforts for the hospital.[9] She is a member of the board of governors of the hospital.[13] She is also a member of the board of the Imran Khan Foundation and Namal Education Foundation,[14] and several charitable and social welfare organisations including the Hameed Muggo Trust and the SAARC Association of Home-Based Workers.[9]

Of Khan's other sisters, Uzma Khanum is a qualified surgeon based in Lahore while Rani Khanum is a university graduate who coordinates charity activities.[7]

Shortly after her marriage to Imran Khan, Jemima acknowledged the support she received from Khan's sisters while adjusting to life in Lahore and described them as "educated, strong women, with lives of their own."[4]

Marriage

Jemima Khan in 2011.
Main article: Jemima Khan

On 16 May 1995, Khan married Jemima Khan, in a traditional Pakistani wedding ceremony in Paris. A month later, on 21 June, they were married again in a civil ceremony at the Richmond registry office in England, followed by a reception at the Goldsmiths' house in Surrey which was attended by London's elite.[15] The marriage, described as "tough" by Khan,[2] ended in 2004 after nine years. Shortly after their marriage, Imran and Jemima arrived at Zaman Park in Lahore from their honeymoon at one of the Goldsmiths' farms in Spain, and were greeted by international and local reporters. It was also announced that Jemima had converted to Islam and she would use 'Khan' as her last name.

As an agreement of his marriage, Khan spent four months a year in England and the rest in Lahore. The marriage produced two sons, Sulaiman Isa (born 18 November 1996) and Kasim (born 10 April 1999).[16] During the marriage Jemima actively participated in a Khan led charity drive for the Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital & Research Centre and also supported her husband in starting his initial political career.

Rumours circulated that the couples marriage was in crisis. Jemima placed an advertisement in Pakistan newspapers to deny them. It read: "Whilst it is true that I am currently studying for a masters degree at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London, it is certainly not true to say that Imran and I are having difficulties in our marriage. This is a temporary arrangement." [17] On 22 June 2004, it was announced that the Khan had divorced ending the nine-year marriage because it was "difficult for Jemima to adapt to life in Pakistan".[18]

The marriage ended amicably. Khan described the six months leading to the divorce and the six months after as the hardest years of his life. After the divorce Jemima returned to Britain with the boys. According to the divorce settlement, Khan's sons visit him in Pakistan during their school holidays while he stays with his former mother-in-law, Lady Annabel Goldsmith, when he comes to London to see them. According to Jemima, Imran and she have remained on very good terms even after the divorce.[19]

Paternal relations

Khan's paternal cousin Inamullah Niazi is a politician and former parliamentarian who was originally a member of the Pakistan Muslim League (N), before becoming senior vice-president of Khan's Tehreek-e-Insaf in Punjab.[20][21]

Maternal relations

Khan's maternal family is known for having produced a long line of cricketers. Eight of his cousins played first-class cricket.[22] The most prominent of them are Javed Burki and Majid Khan, who went on to represent the national team and served as captains.

His maternal cousin Javed Burki briefly played for Pakistan during the 1960s and also captained the national side. After retiring from cricket, Burki served as secretary to the Ministry of Water and Power of the Government of Pakistan.[23] Javed's father (and Imran's uncle through his maternal aunt), General Wajid Ali Khan Burki, was a high-ranking military official and physician in the Pakistan Army.[1] Javed's brother and Imran's cousin, Jamshed Burki, was a retired army major and civil servant who served as a political agent in the Khyber Agency of the tribal areas, among many other important posts, and went on to become the Interior Secretary of Pakistan.

His maternal cousin Majid Khan is a former cricket legend who captained the national side of Pakistan during the 1970s.[2][24] Majid's father (and Imran's uncle) Jahangir Khan was a cricketer during the British Raj era who later served as a cricket administrator in Pakistan post-independence.[25] Majid's son Bazid Khan is also a cricketer who has played at the national level.[26]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Khan, Imran (1993). Warrior Race. London: Butler & Tanner Ltd. ISBN 0-7011-3890-4.
  2. ^ a b c d Adams, Tim (2 July 2006). "The path of Khan". The Observer. UK. Retrieved 5 November 2007.
  3. ^ Ekbal, Nikhat (2009). Undivided India. Gyan Publishing House. p. 224. ISBN 978-8178357560.
  4. ^ a b c Hyat, Kamila (22 November 1995). "Knot For Long?". Outlook India. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
  5. ^ Nauright, John (2012). Sports Around the World: History, Culture, and Practice. ABC-CLIO. p. 232. ISBN 978-1598843002.
  6. ^ "Imran Khan". Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital & Research Centre. Retrieved 12 May 2013.
  7. ^ a b c "Biography of Imran Khan". Angelfire. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
  8. ^ "Friends and foes pray for Imran Khan alike". The News. 10 May 2013. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
  9. ^ a b c d "The IKF Board". Imran Khan Foundation. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
  10. ^ "Home page". CotCom Sourcing. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
  11. ^ "About us". CotCom Sourcing. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
  12. ^ "Contact details". CotCom Sourcing. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
  13. ^ "Board of governors". Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital & Research Centre. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
  14. ^ "Board of governors". Namal College. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
  15. ^ "Profiles:Jemima Khan". Hello!. Retrieved 8 October 2007.
  16. ^ Goldsmith, Annabel (2004). Annabel: An Unconventional Life: The Memoirs of Lady Annabel Goldsmith. London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson. ISBN 0-297-82966-1.
  17. ^ "Jemima Khan: Just don't take her at face value". The Guardian. London. 10 April 2011. Retrieved 26 November 2011.
  18. ^ "Imran Khan and Jemima divorce". BBC. 22 June 2004. Retrieved 5 October 2007.
  19. ^ MacKenzie, Craig (26 November 2011). "'I almost lost the will to live': Imran Khan reveals torment over break-up of his marriage to Jemima Goldsmith". Daily Mail. London. Retrieved 26 November 2011.
  20. ^ "PTI leaders entangled in controversial home deal". The News. 7 January 2013. Retrieved 15 May 2013.
  21. ^ "PTI appearing invincible in Mianwali". Pakistan Today. 30 March 2013. Retrieved 15 May 2013.
  22. ^ McGirk, Tim (21 April 1996). "Profile: Imran Khan: Mogul on the stump". Independent. London. Retrieved 15 May 2013.
  23. ^ "Javed Burki". Cricinfo. 15 May 2013.
  24. ^ "Majid Khan". Cricinfo. Retrieved 15 May 2013.
  25. ^ "Jahangir Khan". Cricinfo. Retrieved 15 May 2013.
  26. ^ "Bazid Khan". Cricinfo. 15 May 2013.
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