Pakistan: Imran Khan, the former prime minister of Pakistan who is currently in jail, is reportedly going to run for the Oxford University chancellor post from his cell. The Telegraph published this information.
Imran Khan, a graduate of Oxford University, is being held at Adiala Jail on several charges. Khan will have to contest the post through an online ballot following the resignation of Tory Party chair Lord Patten, who served in that capacity for 21 years.
Imran Khan’s foreign media advisor, Syed Zulfi Bukhari, told The Telegraph that Khan would run for chancellor of Oxford University because the public is demanding it. He said, “Once Khan gives his approval, we will make a public announcement and begin the petition drive.”
Challengers: Two Ex-British PM
At Keble College in Oxford, Imran Khan studied politics and economics in 1972. From 2005 to 2014, he was Bradford University’s chancellor as well. Notable contenders in the race besides Imran Khan are former British prime ministers Boris Johnson and Sir Tony Blair.
For the first time, the chancellor elections will take place virtually rather than in person, as is customary and requires graduates to wear their full academic dress.
Why is Imran Khan in Jail?
For allegedly inciting demonstrations and violence against the powerful Pakistani military in May 2023, Imran Khan is in jail at the moment. However, he disputes these accusations. “I am confined in a 7-by-8-foot death cell, usually reserved for terrorists. Voting for me was a sign of dissatisfaction with Pakistan’s current government and system,” he said in a recent interview from jail.
Khan was arrested on August 5, 2018, after being found guilty in the first corruption case in Toshakhana, which was brought by the Pakistani Election Commission. Several times since then, he has been held in custody. Even though his conviction was overturned, or he was granted bail, the cricketer-turned-politician remains behind bars. Nationwide protests by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party are being planned to demand the release of its 71-year-old founder, Khan, along with other party leaders and workers who have been arrested.
