Bushra Bibi, the third wife of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder and former prime minister Imran Khan, in known for her spiritual and mystical engagements. She is currently in jail after courts sentenced her in Toshakhana and Iddat cases.
Early life and family background
Bushra Bibi was born on 16th August, 1974 in Diplapur, Okara. She was a renowned saint at the shrine of Baba Farid Gunj Shakar, Pakpattan where she is known as “Pinki Bibi”. She came from a conservative and politically influential family of the Wattoo clan. She originally hails from the town of Pakpattan, the seat of Pakistan’s Chisti order of Sufism famous for the Shrine of Baba Farid, a renowned Punjabi poet and Sufi saint.
Bushra Bibi education
Bushra Bibi’s educational background has not been credible. Generally, it is reported that she received religious education, specific information regarding her academic background or degrees earned has not been publicly disclosed. Her focus has been on spiritual gains, and she has been actively involved in various spiritual and charitable endeavors.
Cases against Bushra Bibi
Bushra Bibi and Imran Khan have been sentenced 14 years jail in Toshakhana case and 7 years jail in Iddat case. The verdict came just less than a week before the national elections on 8th February 2024.
Khawar Maneka marriage case
In 2023, Bushra Bibi’s former husband Khawar Maneka filed case against Bushra Bibi and alleged that his divorced wife did not observe the necessary three-month break required under Islamic law before remarrying Imran Khan. He claimed that he divorced his wife in November 2017. Controversially, Imran Khan announced his third marriage with Bibi in February 2018.
Al-Qadir Trust case
Bushra Bibi and Imran Khan have been defamed in Al-Qadir Trust case which proved that both had gained substantial financial gains and land from a real estate firm for a settlement between the PTI administration and the real estate owner. Bushra Bibi and Imran Kahn were sentenced to jail and fined over $2 million each in a corruption case.
Imran Khan-Bushra Bibi intimacy
Bushra Bibi is the third wife of Imran Khan whereas he married her in 2018 through low-profile ceremony. Unconventionally, their journey took an unexpected turn amid speculations that Imran Khan sought advice from Bushra Bibi after meeting at the shrine of Baba Farid Gunj Shakar. She met Imran Khan in 2016 when he used to seek spiritual guidance from her. Imran Khan proposed her and she married with him after getting divorce from Khawar Maneka.
Bushra Bibi as spiritual healer
Bushra Bibi has been recognised and respected as spiritual personality in her area. Imran Khan, as Bushra Bibi’s devotee, has been seeking insight from her on various issues. She also foretold that their marriage (Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi) was pivotal to Imran Khan becoming prime minister of Pakistan and start of a progressive era in the country. Six months after their marital union, he indeed assumed office as Prime Minister. Contrarily, the 2nd part of her prediction for a prosperous Pakistan couldn’t prove to be true yet. Imran Khan’s political career neared a collapse with his ousting by a parliamentary vote of no confidence in 2022 and subsequent arrest in 2023.
Bushra Bibi as Imran Khan’s wife
Bushra Bibi is the 3rd wife of Imran Khan, the former cricketer and prime minister of Pakistan. Their marriage took place in 2018, and she became the First Lady of Pakistan. As the spouse of a prominent leader, Bushra Bibi has been involved in various philanthropic activities and has supported her husband’s political career.
Bushra Bibi’s first husband
Before her marriage to Imran Khan, Bushra Bibi was previously married to Khawar Farid Maneka in 1989 and divorced him in November 2017. Her first marriage lasted about 28 years. Khawar Farid Maneka was a customs officer who belonged to a politically influential Punjab family. In 1987, she got married to Khawar Maneka, the son of Pakistani politician Ghulam Muhammad Maneka, who was a Member of the National Assembly of Pakistan and also served as a federal minister in the cabinet of Benazir Bhutto. His brother Ahmad Raza Maneka is also a Pakistani politician and a member of the National Assembly of Pakistan.
Bushra Bibi-Maneka children
Bushra Bibi has three daughters and two sons with Khawar. Her eldest daughter, Mehru Maneka, is married to the son of Pakistani politician Mian Atta Muhammad Manika who served the Provincial Assembly of the Punjab. Two of her three daughters are married.
In 2013, her two sons, Ebrahim and Musa, graduated from the Aitchison College, Lahore. Thereafter, they went abroad to pursue higher education.
