A Royal Image Boost

바카라 웹사이트FORMER cricket captain Imran Khan has once again caused ripples in Pakistani politics—this time by playing host to Britain's Princess Diana. Her 48-hour visit to Lahore last week not only raised funds for Imran's cancer hospital but also helped him gain tremendous political mileage.바카라 웹사이트

바카라 웹사이트Close on the heels of Khan's widely-seen interview on Zee TV and his formal announcement to enter politics, Diana's visit was just what he needed to boost his image, both nationally and internationally. Here was a former cricket idol, harbouring political ambitions, at whose personal invitation a member of the British royal family—who the Pakistanis still hold in awe—had come all the way from London to pep up a pet charity project.

바카라 웹사이트Khan, who openly criticises the existing socio-political set-up and even the Benazir Bhutto government, has been blacklisted by the official media, especially by Pakistan Television. Even in the World Cup-related coverage, almost everybody connected with cricket figures on PTV except Khan, under whose captaincy Pakistan had won the Cup four years ago. The aim is to keep him out of the public eye as much as possible. But the ploy seems to have backfired.

바카라 웹사이트As luck would have it, Diana's visit provided an excellent opportunity for Khan to get even with the discriminating official media. Since the Princess still enjoys royal privileges, the Pakistan government had to accord her due protocol despite the fact that Khan declared he did not need any help from the government and would take care of her stay and security himself. PTV also could not afford to blank out Diana's activities. But the problem was how to gain access to the Princess without involving Khan or mentioning the purpose of the visit.

Eventually, the state television network did cover Princess Diana's arrival but Khan was left out of the picture. Ironically, while the Pakistani celebrity was missing, his rich British wife, Jemima, could not be ignored because she was sitting right beside the Princess.

Once again, the government has reacted nervously to Khan's tactics. But to no avail. The more the government tries to play him down, the greater is the hype surrounding him. The PPP government appears to be making the same mistake that it made in its first tenure from 1988 to 1990. It had unnecessarily attached too much importance to then Punjab chief minister Nawaz Sharif who went on to be come Prime Minister of Pakistan and Benazir Bhutto's bete noire.

바카라 웹사이트The same seems to be happening in the case of Khan. Observed an opponent of both the Muslim League and the PPP: "What the government is actually doing is to set the stage for another Mian Nawaz Sharif". Only, Khan appears to be much smarter. With Sharif nowhere near staging a comeback, Khan is being billed as the next challenge to the Benazir Bhutto regime. He is charismatic, popular, new and still has a clean image. The last two qualities have a special appeal for the Pakistani people who are becoming increasingly fed up with the stereotype political sloganeering and rampant corruption.

바카라 웹사이트The former cricketer, however, hotly denied the media speculation that Diana's visit was designed to boost his political image. Said he: "There is absolutely no political aspect to her visit and the media's attempt to create a scandal is both unfair and unwarranted. The sole purpose of her visit is to show support for a worthy cause." But the Urdu press could not be repressed—it latched on to reports from British tabloids saying the Princess was in Lahore to see her new lover, a doctor of Pakistani origin who had invited her to visit his family for Id. It added that Khan's invitation was just a cover-up for the lovers' meeting. Such reports annoyed Khan no end, say his close friends, but he chose not to react. Instead, he issued a general statement attacking the media for irresponsible reporting.

바카라 웹사이트But the private lives of public persons are always open to speculation and though British diplomats and Pakistani officials in Islamabad have declined to comment, it will take some time for the excitement generated by the royal visit to subside. Allowing Khan ample time to score another run over his opponents.바카라 웹사이트