Brandon J. Weichert
Imran Khan is a lightning-rod figure in Pakistani politics. A celebrity-turned-politician, he rode a populist wave to power in 2018, only to lose power four years later in a very Pakistani fashion—a putsch by a coalition of his opponents, including both civilian and military leaders. Today, one of Khan’s leading opponents, Shehbaz Sharif, leads the government as prime minister, with the all-important backing of the Pakistan Army and its Svengali-esque chief of staff Asim Munir.
After the coup, Khan was arrested and imprisoned, and his ultimate fate has been a constant question on the minds not only of his supporters but also on the minds of concerned observers the world over. Because of Khan’s personal celebrity as a successful cricketer playing for the Pakistani national team, he has legions of supporters around the world. And even non-cricketers can see that Pakistani politics today resembles an elaborate morality play, in which the jailed former leader has the support of the people and a shadowy cabal of his enemies is working to exclude him and his allies from power.
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