Islamabad: While Pakistan’s cricketer-turned politician Imran Khan divorced his previous two wives for other reasons, this time he may be about to break the third marriage thanks to another love of his life – a pet dog named Sheru (tiger).
There were rumours that first Sheru was sent out of Imran Khan’s farm house after he married Bushra Maneka who reportedly was not very fond of pet animals living alongside residents.
A new quarter was being built for Sheru in the vicinity of Bani Gala but outside the main residence building. Imran Khan’s supporters had more sympathy with Sheru than his new wife, a spiritual guide of the Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) chief.
Now there are reports that Sheru is back but Bushra Maneka has not been seen since a month. Domestic dispute between Imran Khan and Bushra Maneka was reported after she returned to her parents’ home.
Ms Maneka considered the presence of dogs, an interruption in her religious activities, which became a reason for their expulsion from the home. Imran Khan had previously negated rumours about kicking out his “Sheru”, saying, the dog in question had died a few years back.
The other reason behind the feud was the overdue presence of Bushra Maneka’s son at Bani Gala residence of PTI chief.
Reports said that it was agreed before the marriage — that no one from Bushra Maneka’s family would stay for a longer period of time at Bani Gala, however, the presence of Ms Maneka’s son from his former husband, Khawar Fareed Maneka irked Imran Khan.
Reham Khan, the second wife of PTI supremo, also had a skirmish with him after her son stayed at Imran Khan’s residence. Jemima Goldsmith, Mr Khan’s first wife had parted ways after around ten years of marriage — failing to settle down in Pakistan.
Mr Khan has tied the knot for the third time with Bushra Maneka in February. She clad from head-to-toe and with a veil covering her face in the photos shared by PTI on social media.
Ms Maneka belongs to a religious and conservative family, Mr Khan too has shed the playboy status that he once held in his younger years and reverted to Pakistan’s traditional society. Hailed as hero of Cricket World Cup 1992, Mr Khan was once known as Pakistan’s most eligible bachelor.
Khan’s previous two marriages captivated both global and local media, especially his first marriage to Ms Goldsmith, a British socialite, in 1995, with whom he has two sons, Sulaiman Khan and Qasim Khan.
The marriage that lasted more than nine years ended amiably but Mr Khan admitted in his 2011 book, Pakistan: A Personal History: The “six months leading to the divorce and the six months after were the hardest times of my life.” Mr Khan’s second marriage to Pakistani journalist Reham Khan ended after 10 months in 2015.
Over the past few years, Khan has emerged as a strong candidate for top position in Pakistani politics following the ouster of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif through judicial proceedings and Mr Khan’s politics of social justice and rule of law.
