I have never had the patience for long-winded novels, and much less for memoirs, but I am glad I persuaded myself to read Imran Khan’s Pakistan: A Personal History. Now that Tehreek-e-Insaaf , the political party founded and led by Imran Khan, gathers momentum – after many years in the political wilderness – and may yet grow to challenge the established political parties in the next elections, it is time to take a closer look at the man who leads this party, and promises to restore justice and dignity to Pakistan’s long-suffering but mostly passive population.
Once I had gotten past the Prologue – which I thought did not belong at the beginning of the book – Khan’s narrative never lost its power to sustain my interest. The book takes the reader through many unexpected shifts in the protagonist’s life – from cricket to charity work, from charity work to politics, from the life of a celebrity to a life of piety, from disdain for Islam to a deepening respect for its richness and depth, from contempt (a colonial legacy common to Pakistan’s elites) for ordinary Pakistanis to a growing concern for their tormented lives, from wilting shyness before audiences to a determination to face the glare of public life, from growing anxiety about Pakistan’s problems to an unshakable resolve to do something about them; etc. In short, the book takes the reader through the life of an extraordinary man, at first fully immersed in the privileges of his class and his cricket celebrity but slowly turning inwards, questioning the colonial mindset of his own privileged class, angry at the limitless corruption of Pakistan’s rulers, and, finally, reaching resolution in his commitment to take Pakistan back from its corrupt elites. A politician with Imran Khan’s record would be rare in Western ‘democracies.’ In a country like Pakistan, mired for decades in the corruption of rapacious elites, he is an anomaly – an outlier. Should the Pakistanis embrace Imran Khan, should they give him the chance to pick and lead the nation’s political team, this could be a game-changer for their country.
While describing his spiritual journey following the pain of his mother’s death, Imran Khan sums up his life in an aphorism, “A spiritual person takes responsibility for society, whereas a materialist only takes responsibility for himself (87).” Quite apart from the truth-value of this statement (since a ‘materialist’ or someone without belief in God or afterlife may also choose to take responsibility for society), this sentiment very aptly describes the author’s long and tortuous passage from indifference towards larger questions – both metaphysical and political – to a deepening engagement with God and the history and fate of Pakistanis and Muslims. In time, after much soul-searching, Imran Khan chooses to take “responsibility for society.” Once he has formed a conviction, Imran Khan has shown that there is no turning back for him.
Imran Khan’s autobiography contains some homespun theology too. At one point, he describes how cricket nudged him towards faith; it began with observations on cricketing luck. A game can turn on the toss of a coin; success in bowling can depend on the way the ball is stitched, on umpiring mistakes, on fortuitous injuries, on the weather, etc. In other words, “there seemed to be a zone beyond which players were helpless, and it was called luck (84).” He muses, “…could what we call luck actually be the will of God?” Is it possible, amidst the infinite complexity that produces any outcome, that God intervenes in our lives, nudges a particle here a particle there to confront us with outcomes that surprise us, overthrow our certainties, deflate our egos, forcing us to think of higher forces?
After his mother’s painful death from cancer, Imran Khan turned away from God. Questions of theodicy troubled him. He worried that his life’s accomplishments could vanish in a moment. In the face of this vulnerability, persuaded by a logic that recalls Pascal’s wager, he resumed his salaat. “This was really like an insurance policy – a sort of safety net in case God really did exist.” It is likely that Imran had arrived at his reasoning on his own, or he had encountered this argument in the Qur’an. Unknown to most Muslims, the Qur’an makes this argument on several occasions; it is then taken up by Hazrat ‘Ali, the Prophet’s cousin, and in the eleventh century by al-Ghazzali.[1]
Imran Khan speaks reverently of the influence of Mian Bashir on his life, an obscure but spiritually gifted man who gently led him to discover the inwardness and beauty of Islam. People who have lost touch with metaphysics will likely frown at this influence. Untroubled by such skeptics, Imran Khan recognizes this obscure sufi as the “single most powerful spiritual influence” on his life. I respect this openness to the Unseen, this divinely implanted ‘naiveté’ – if you will – that lies at the heart of all authentic religious experience, and that Western rationalism and scientism have nearly destroyed in modern man. Despite the materialism that assails us, we can stay in touch with this ‘naiveté.’ In better times too, very few men and women could reach the summits of the mystical ascent; but they sought spiritual sustenance in the baraka of the valis, friends of God. Unknown to Pakistan’s militant secularists, Asadullah Khan Ghalib too – despite his celebrated skepticism – sought intimacy with God through veneration of Hazrat ‘Ali and his family.
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Imran Khan is nothing if not resolute in pursuing the goals he sets for himself; and his goals have never been modest. “Over the years,” he writes, “I came to the conclusion that ‘genius’ is being obsessed with what you are doing (63).” Quite early in his cricket career, spurred by the example of Dennis Lillee, he decided to remake himself as a fast bowler. His teammates and coach warned him that he “had neither the physique nor the bowling action to become a fast bowler (118)” and he could ruin his career if he tried to change his bowling style. Imran Khan was not deterred. He remodeled his “bowling action to become a fast bowler,” and as he worked hard towards this goal – he writes – “my body also became stronger for me to bowl fast.” Most cricket commentators agree that Imran Khan went on to establish himself as one of the greatest fast bowlers of all time. Fewer still have combined his eminence in fast bowling with skill at batting and leading his team.
When Imran Khan set out in 1984 to establish Pakistan’s first cancer hospital – he ran into a wall of skepticism. When he presented his plans for the Hospital to the leading Pakistani doctors in Lahore and London, they were dismissive; he did not give up. Working indefatigably to collect mostly small donations from tens of thousands of people at home and abroad, Imran Khan began construction work on the project in April 1991. The Hospital admitted its first patients in December 1994, with a commitment to provide free care to all poor patients. Skeptics had warned that this policy was not viable, but generous Pakistanis proved them wrong. Now plans are underway for building two more cancer hospitals in Peshawar and Karachi.
Our author has shown the same dogged persistence in the arena of politics. When he announced his entry into politics in 1996 – with the formation of a new party, Tehreek-e-Insaaf, dedicated to fighting corruption in public life – Pakistanis ignored him. In the first elections it contested in 1997, the Tehreek won no seat; in the second election in 2002, it won a single seat. Imran Khan could draw large crowds to his rallies, but they were drawn to their cricket hero not the political leader who promised to deliver a better future for them. Perhaps, Imran Khan had not done his homework. His promise to fight corruption did not yet carry a broad appeal; his message did not resonate with workers, peasants, students, clerks and small shop-keepers. Pakistanis knew that their leaders are corrupt, but they did not see Imran Khan as the force that could pry Pakistan out of their dirty but powerful grip. Imran Khan had not begun the hard work of building his party from the ground up, creating a cadre of committed workers and donors. He spent too much time on talk shows and too little time organizing his party.
The failure of Tehreek-e-Insaaf to make an impact in the 2002 elections may well have ended Imran Khan’s political career; but he was not ready to quit the field. He persisted in his attacks on Pakistan’s corrupt elites through regular appearances on television talk shows that had proliferated following General Musharraf’s liberalization of the media. Then came the attacks of 9-11, the US decision to draft Pakistan into its so-called Global War Against Terror. Gleefully, Pakistan’s generals accepted every demand that the US made on Pakistan’s sovereignty; they gave the US air and land corridors to Afghanistan, control of one or more airbases in Pakistan, and free run of Pakistan to CIA operatives. Only the religious parties and jihadi factions opposed this surrender of Pakistan’s sovereignty, but they occupied limited political space in Pakistan. With few exceptions, Pakistan’s ‘liberal’ and ‘left’ intellectuals also supported the US War; they were happy to see the Taliban driven out by the American invaders. The political tides were begging to turn for Imran Khan. This was his opportunity to broaden his critique of Pakistan’s corrupt political classes; their corruption now veered towards treason. None of this was surprising, but it did bring out into the open Pakistan’s descent to the depths of servitude.
As events unfolded, the charge of treason would gain greater plausibility. General Musharraf’s government kept the Americans happy by killing the Taliban who had sought refuge in Pakistan; others were captured and handed over to the Americans. In open violation of Pakistan’s constitution, the government also began to disappear Pakistanis who were then secretly transferred to the Americans. Pakistan’s involvement in America’s war entered a new phase in 2004 as the CIA mounted its first drone strikes on Pakistani territory. On American demand, the generals also directed the Pakistani military to attack Taliban sanctuaries in Waziristan. Pakistan’s political classes had now privatized the army. Pakistani soldiers now killed the Taliban and Pakistanis to enrich the country’s political elites.
While the generals collected cash from the US, Pakistanis would pay the price for this treason. Pakistan’s war against the Taliban and their Pashtun hosts produced a frightening backlash that has continued to grow. The logic of this backlash was simple, as Imran Khan also explains. No doubt encouraged by the Afghan Taliban, the families of the Pashtun victims – calling themselves the Pakistani Taliban – mounted devastating retaliatory attacks against military and civilian targets in Pakistan, but mostly against the latter. There was no change in Pakistan’s commitment to America’s war when a civilian government, led corrupt politicians rehabilitated under a deal hatched in Washington, replaced General Musharraf in 2008. While Pakistan’s liberal and left intellectuals wanted the government to exterminate the Pakistani Taliban; they insisted that the Pakistani Taliban was an Islamic fundamentalist movement to take power in Pakistan and had nothing to do with the war Pakistani military had unleashed against the Pashtuns. Imran made the opposite argument. Terminate the war against the Pashtuns and Afghans, and the Pakistani Taliban would cease their attacks; they would disappear as quickly as they had appeared.
Not a big fan of Imran Khan but I agree that he stands head and shoulders above the modern day Pharohs ruling over Pakistan. Looking around me and listening to the buzz on the street, it does seem like his time has finally come……..
I agree this is his time and it is a good news for Pakistan,
Bravo. One of the most thorough articles I have come across on the subject. On a side note, I would like to add few cents to your article:
1. In the beginning of the article, you implied the definition of spiritualist vs. materialist. Having spent some time in the corridors of spiritualism and materialism, I think the distinction based on religion is relatively shallow. You will find many God believing materialists and plenty of agnostic spiritualists in the world. This observation is also consistent with the Sufi discourse.
2. As for your reference to his economic policy gaps, I agree more work is required on that front. However, with inclusion of Asad Umer (Ex-CEO of Engro) in the ranks of PTI, I think whatever system comes out will be socialist in its soul but capitalist in its outlook (like China?), and will focus on progressive yet symmetric and slightly heavy taxation structure across the board.
Philosophical and idealistic thoughts in crude unsopisticated society doesnt stand water,where democracies are farce even in so called free western societies the POWER politics plays the role,the private giants purchase the democracies and thier ideal leaders ,coming to PAKISTAN where litracy is below average the votes sell like oranges in the market the highest bidder takes all.Imran khan has to see that it is not easy to won the elections by mere rhetorics but by giving the massess programme in thier own language under the PEEPLE TREE the people listen ,and come out to vote ,JAGIRDARS SARDARS CHUDHRIES AND PEERS are the decadant monsters he has to kill them like a gladiator with one sword only then he can achieve his BRIGHT GOALS GOals which are high in ideals and achievable too.I wish him GOD SPEED.
Pakistan is a strange place- leaders lead their followers to exactly opposite of what they claim as their objective. Zulfikar Ali Bhutto set out to help the poor; his nationalisation policy harmed our economy so seriously that we have yet to recover from thus making it more difficult for people to come out of poverty. Zia and religious parties wanted to implement Sharia; see what happened to that. Our generals want to preserve our national unity and territorial integrity; and their policies has caused so many of our problems. MQM was supposed to help Mohajirs and caused mayhem in their cities. And now Imran Khan is the last hope of corrupt politicians- by shouting that everyone (but a few chosen ones) is corrupt, he has damaged the credibility of the allegation and will divide the anti corruption votes. All credit to Benazir, Nawaz Sharif and Zardari- they did not set out to do anything except complete their tenures and so did not cause a great damage
i wish media could just go into the tribal territories and see their life. i am wandering pakistan will end up in civil war soon when pakistani talibans are removed because these talibans has given immeasurable hurts to the tribal residents feeling. they have ruined with their culture and thus as a tribal resident i would never forgive these criminals who are being supported by a strong organisation for their own aims. i call this a war of deception not a war of terrorism in which only pushtoons are used like a pawns in afghanistan and pakistan.i laugh when people say that fish in the water is thirsty .. indeed the only solution is to educate tribal people thats the only way out in bringing peace in the region.
I LOVE YOU IMRAN KHAN
Imran ji could be a changing face of political scenario in south Asia
Will read one page a day…too good to finish in haste
Sir, thanks for providing us comprehensive view about Imran’s policies. great write!!
InshaALLAH Imran khan will b our Next PM……InshaALLAH……
Its probably the best article I have ever read in my whole life .
But at 1 point i will like to disagree . Where u said
“If it appears that the tehreek is going to win the next elections scheduled for 2013, will the elections be held ? Or, if they are allowed to preceed will they not be rigged to ensure the tehreek’s defeat .
Alternatively the political parties in power may try to increase the chaos in Pakistan’s cities and thus pave the way for a millitary take over .that may end Imran Khan’s political career .”
well . . . Today pti is the only party having the street power and As the John F. Kennedy says ‘those who make the peacefull revolution impossible acually make voilent revolution inevitable’
today ppl are anxiously want imran khan to lead the long march and end the present gov. to take over Pakistan from these american puppets(brown sahibs) .
‘If a party has street power today in Pakistan then thats no other than tereek’
saif imran on a tv show
‘if u have street power then what for God sake u r waiting for why don’t you bring the government down as the ppl wish and hope’ the female anchor shouts back.
The elections are coming soon and we are
waiting for them bqz we don’t wana give another chance to pti for pretending to be a poltical shaheed’ replied imran khan .
So the question that i ask is if the elections will not be held or rigged . Or if the millitary takes over who’ll stop the youth of Pakistan ? The youth who is sick of these brown sahibs . The youth who’s sick of unemployement and slavery . And is fully potent to stand up against tne state and this 2% elite class of Pakistan . As they have already proved in long march which was unfortunately taken over by as status quo force i.e N leage .
this is a great,exhaustive and informative column on tehreek’s policies but it contains difficult terminology. so it may become difficult to red out and impossible to be understood by lay man, i suggest to writer or admin or any other person concerned, that please translate the same in urdu and give its link on tehreek e insaf’s facebook page or website, i m sure this effort shall take great affect, thanks for giving us much detail about tehreek e insaf that we could be able to choose right, and better leadership for our country,
Great insite I think he is last hope for change in pakistan inshalla.
I like Imran for his slogan, against corruption and corrupt political mafia, I think insha Allah Imran’s tsunami will remove corruption and corrupt political mafia from Pakistan. Really Pakistan needs a leader with firm will to do something for Pakistan.