Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan Fights to Save His Political Career After ‘Failing to Reveal He Had a Lovechild’
The former prime minister has been summoned by the country’s High Court for not declaring that he secretly fathered a daughter
Former cricketing legend Imran Khan is fighting to save his political career in Pakistan after being accused of failing to reveal he had a lovechild with a British heiress. The former prime minister of Pakistan has been summoned by the country’s High Court for not declaring that he secretly fathered a daughter called Tyrian Jade with a socialite named Sita White, the daughter of a British tycoon and peer.
Under Pakistan’s election laws, a candidate has to declare the names of his wife and dependent children in his nomination papers to the Election Commission. In the 2018 national election which swept Mr Khan, 70, to power, he disclosed he had two sons with his ex-wife, socialite Jemima Khan. But he did not mention Tyrian White, 27, was his daughter with Ms White.
If found guilty, Mr Khan can be disqualified from standing in an election for the next five years, which means he may not be able to contest this year’s national election in March. The former sporting legend was ousted as prime minister last year after losing a vote of no confidence in parliament, but remains very popular, and could win this year’s election.
Mr Khan’s supporters have dismissed the case as politically motivated, accusing the government parties of using it to disqualify him, and smearing his reputation in a conservative Muslim society, where children out of wedlock are frowned upon.
The cricketer, now an ambitious politician in his country, denied being Tyrian’s father in the first few years. Mr Khan then took Tyrian under his care and raised her in London with Jemima Khan, whom he had divorced months earlier, but with whom he maintained a friendly relationship. Tyrian divides her time between New York and London and is believed to stay with Ms Khan when she is in the UK.
