The Media Line: Imran Khan’s Party Threatens Legal Action Over Economist Story on Bushra Bibi 

Imran Khan’s Party Threatens Legal Action Over Economist Story on Bushra Bibi 

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf accuses The Economist of publishing a defamatory, politically motivated portrayal of Bibi’s role in national affairs

The Media Line 

[Islamabad] Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), the party of jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan, has demanded that British weekly The Economist issue an immediate and unconditional public apology over an article about Khan’s wife, Bushra Bibi, and is threatening legal action if the magazine does not comply. The dispute, which erupted over the weekend in Islamabad, centers on allegations in the article that Bibi wielded spiritual and political influence behind the scenes with help from Pakistan’s intelligence services. 

The Economist piece, titled “The Mystic, the Cricketer and the Spy: Pakistan’s Game of Thrones,” focuses on Khan and Bibi and asserts that his marriage to his spiritual adviser “shocked the country” and that “now she could help decide whether he returns to the office or stays in prison.” The report presents Bibi as a mysterious figure allegedly involved in mystical practices and claims she guided Khan on sensitive national and political matters through supernatural means. It also alleges that some intelligence officers passed sensitive information to her, which she then relayed to Khan as “spiritual intuition.” 

Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, the PTI chairman, said on Saturday that “The Economist’s article was intentionally harmful and filled with falsehoods.” He added that “such tactics cannot break Bushra Bibi, and at a time when she is in jail, the publication of such an article is strongly condemned. This is a sponsored piece, and the party will take legal action.” According to Barrister Khan, “despite previous wicked conspiracies meant to smear Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi, their standing in the world has consistently improved.” 

“The article published in The Economist is nothing more than a fabricated story, he stated that the BBC has apologized for wrongly editing the US President’s speech, and time will prove that these claims too are based on misrepresentation and are baseless.” 

The party’s central information secretary, Sheikh Waqas Akram, delivered PTI’s official reaction, calling the piece “the so-called analysis published in The Economist” and saying it “is nothing more than recycled propaganda masquerading as foreign commentary.” He underlined that “the article makes no mention of human rights violations, the rigged elections acknowledged even by Commonwealth observers, the hundreds of PTI supporters recently handed 10-year sentences in fabricated cases, or the systematic political persecution the party continues to face.” 

Akram added that “instead of addressing these realities, the writers chose to focus on the personal lives of the country’s most popular leader—a man admired by millions.” He stated that “PTI reserves the right to initiate legal action against all parties involved, including the writers and The Economist, if they do not issue an immediate, full, and public apology for what he described as a baseless, reckless, and defamatory attack on the leader of 240 million Pakistanis and his supporters around the world.” 

The article has reignited debate in Pakistan about the relationship between Khan and Bibi, the role of spirituality in political decision-making, and the extent of their alleged ties to state institutions. It comes at a moment when Khan and PTI are already embroiled in legal and political confrontation with the country’s ruling establishment. 

Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Asif has publicly backed the core claims of The Economist report. He said the article was accurate and asserted that Bibi worked for former intelligence chief General Faiz Hameed, adding that the information she provided was generally found to be correct. During a televised interview on Sunday, Asif said that Khan was completely under the control of General Faiz and General Bajwa, and that Bibi’s influence had a negative impact on his reform agenda. 

Critics of the report, though, insist it is an attempt to attack Bibi’s personal life rather than to scrutinize policy or governance. They argue that focusing on alleged supernatural influence and private relationships amounts to character assassination. 

Shafi Jan, a provincial lawmaker from the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa assembly and special assistant to the chief minister, told The Media Line, “The report portrays Imran Khan and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s governance in a biased and distorted manner, presenting sensational allegations, anonymous sources, domestic staff rumors, and statements from political opponents as facts.” 

Jan denies the claim that Bibi interfered in government affairs, pointing out that records of the Federal Cabinet, the Economic Coordination Committee, the National Security Committee, and parliamentary proceedings all refute these allegations. He added that no government officer or institution has ever lodged a complaint regarding such interference. 

He added that it is condemnable to turn rumors about domestic matters into “analysis,” calling such narratives an example of unserious journalism. 

The Media Line reached out to Bushra Taskeen, co-author of The Economist article, for her comments, but she did not respond despite multiple requests. 

Some analysts say the controversy surrounding the story cannot be separated from Pakistan’s current political moment. Dr. Azeem Khalid, a New York-based South Asia expert, speaking about the timing of the story’s release, told The Media Line, “The passage describes how a recent controversial constitutional amendment in Pakistan is being overshadowed by a deliberately amplified debate on hyper-local conspiracy theories. This shift in focus is designed to distract the public from the amendment’s significant implications.” 

Khalid noted that the release of this story at such a critical political moment inevitably gives the impression that it is supporting the narrative of the current regime. He emphasized that it creates a perception of alignment with one side of the power structure, and whether fair or not, this perception can have serious long-term consequences for the story’s credibility. 

Looking ahead, Khalid observed that historians studying this period 50 years from now will cite such stories as references. He added that “some historians might view them as evidence of how public perception was shaped, how the character of a political leader was framed, and how national attention was steered away from deeper constitutional questions.” 

Sajjad Azhar, a Rawalpindi-based historian and political observer, shared his views with The Media Line from a very different angle. “In my view, Bushra Bibi was a planted character, introduced by the country’s top intelligence agency to keep a firm grip on Imran Khan during his tenure as prime minister,” he told The Media Line. 

“In Pakistan, superstition and beliefs in spiritual influence are widespread, so within Pakistan’s top intelligence agencies, specialized units track influential religious and spiritual figures, whom senior officials—including presidents and prime ministers—often consult for guidance. 

According to Azhar, “Observing Khan’s strong religious and spiritual inclination, the then-head of Pakistan’s top intelligence agency sought individuals to influence him, which brought Bibi’s role as a spiritual guide into focus, eventually culminating in their marriage.” 

He added that a similar narrative had once surrounded Khan’s former wife, Reham Khan, with claims that British intelligence agencies were involved. “In response, our own agencies may have tried to counter that by introducing someone from within the country,” he said. 

Referring to earlier examples, Azhar said that during the era of the former Shah of Iran, Pakistani leaders such as former Governor-General Iskander Mirza and former Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto married Iranian women, which fueled claims of foreign intelligence involvement. “It appears that, in this context, domestic institutions may have considered using trusted Pakistani figures to engage with key personalities,” he explained. 

Khan, once a cricket team captain, often describes his transformation from a celebrated sports icon to a spiritually driven political leader as a gradual internal shift rather than an abrupt change. He has said that spirituality made him more selfless and strengthened his trust in divine guidance, adding that his references to faith in public life come from conviction, not political calculation. 

A key turning point, Khan recalls, was his mother’s death from cancer in 1985, which inspired him to establish the Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital. Built in her memory, it became Pakistan’s first state-of-the-art charitable cancer facility and marked his first major step into public service, demonstrating how personal loss and spiritual reflection guided him toward social commitment. 

Khan and his wife Bibi have been convicted and sentenced in major corruption cases in Pakistan, part of a sweeping legal and political fallout since his 2022 ouster. Khan was handed a 14-year prison term and Bibi a seven-year term in January 2025, while dozens of other investigations remain open. 

Despite being imprisoned, Khan’s popularity remains resilient. With 21.1 million followers on X, he remains the most-followed Muslim politician globally, reflecting his enduring influence and the strong loyalty he inspires among his supporters.