Bushra Bibi

Bushra Bibi
بشریٰ بی بی
Bibi delivering a speech in 2024
Personal details
Born	Bushra Riaz Wattoo (1971-03-12) 12 March 1971 (age 53)[1] Pakpattan, Punjab, Pakistan[1]
Spouse(s)	Khawar Maneka ​ ​ (m. 1989; div. 2017)​ Imran Khan ​ ​ (m. 2018)​
Children	5
Known for	Spouse of the Prime Minister of Pakistan (2018–2022)

Bushra Bibi^[a] (born Bushra Riaz Wattoo; 12 March 1971) is a Pakistani politician and the third spouse of Imran Khan, the former prime minister of Pakistan.^[2] She and Khan married six months before he assumed office as Prime Minister.^[3][4]

Bibi made her political debut at the 2024 Final Call protests of PTI.

Bushra was born to a conservative, politically influential family from central Punjab. She belongs to the Wattoo clan, a landowning Jat group,^[5] of whom the Manekas are a sub-clan.^[3][6] She was formerly a resident of Pakpattan, located 250 km southwest of Lahore. The town is known for being home to the Shrine of Baba Farid, of whom both she and Khan are spiritual followers, and where they first met.^[3]

Bushra married Khawar Maneka in 1989.^[7] Khawar Maneka was a senior Customs official and a son of Ghulam Muhammad Maneka, a former federal minister in Benazir Bhutto's cabinet. His brother Ahmad Raza Maneka is currently a member of the National Assembly of Pakistan, and is affiliated with the PML-N.^[8] They divorced in 2017.^[3] She has three daughters and two sons from her first marriage. Her sons graduated from the Aitchison College in Lahore in 2013, and pursued higher education abroad.^[3] Her eldest daughter Mehru Maneka is the daughter-in-law of politician Mian Atta Muhammad Manika.^[3][9] Another of her daughters is also married.^[8]

On 6 August 2018, it was reported that Mehru Maneka had joined Khan's PTI following a meeting with him.^[10]

Khan and Bushra met for the first time in 2015 through Bibi's sister, Maryam Riaz Wattoo.^[9][11] According to Dawn, Khan, noted for his increasing inclination towards Sufism in recent decades, was a frequent visitor of Baba Farid's shrine in Pakpattan, where he would pay homage to the renowned 12th-century Sufi saint. He usually visited the town in the evening escorted by his private guards, and would later stay for a few hours at the Maneka family's residence, his local hosts, after which he would return to Islamabad. The Manekas were influential locally, and shared a "spiritual relationship" with Khan.^[6] Bushra, who was at that time married to Khawar Maneka, was a known and respected Sufi scholar, spiritual mentor and faith healer, also referred to as a pir or murshid,^[6] and this is what reportedly drew Khan closer to her.^[12] She has been described as a leader of pilgrimages to Baba Farid's shrine.^[12] During his visits, Khan would often consult her on spiritual matters whenever he found himself in a "difficult situation."^[6]

My interest in Sufism started 30 years ago. It changed my life. Sufism is an order with many levels, but I have never met anyone who is as high as my wife. My interest in her began with that.

— Imran Khan in an interview, regarding his marriage to Bushra Bibi.^[12]

According to Khan, the couple were introduced via Bibi’s sister Maryam Riaz Wattoo, who is a PTI member, while he was trying to understand the teachings of a 13th-century Sufi saint. He would visit Bibi’s house to receive counsel and advice on these and other religious matters, and "read the books she would recommend".^[12] According to sources, Khan interacted with Bibi shortly before the 2015 by-election in Lodhran for the NA-154 constituency. He became "very pleased" when his candidate Jahangir Tareen won that election, which she had correctly predicted, and started visiting and consulting her more regularly for guidance.^[6] According to a family source, Khan held "a lot of reverence for [Bushra] as a true follower."^[6] As the visits became more frequent, their personal understanding also grew.^[12] However, the prospect of marriage never surfaced until Khan learnt of Bushra's divorce. In an interview after his marriage, Khan said he "did not catch a glimpse" of his wife's face until after they were married; "I proposed to her without seeing her because she had never met me without her face being covered with a full veil."^[12] He acknowledged that he had seen only an "old photograph" of her at her house prior to that.^[12] When he finally did see her, he was not disappointed and is "now happily married."^[12]

Talking about how her life changed after marrying Khan, she said that before her marriage her life revolved around praying to God, but Imran taught her that serving the helpless and needy is equally important.^[13] Khan, known for his previous relationships, insisted his attitude had changed over time and he came to believe that "the character of a person and the mind, the intellect, is much more important than the physical, because in my experience that has the smallest shelf life." He has referenced his respect to his wife based on her intellect and character.^[12] A few months after their marriage, the couple went on a pilgrimage to Makkah.^[12] Bushra has been described as an introvert who prefers to stay at home rather than attending social functions and gatherings very frequently, to which Khan admittedly has no objections, as he himself is "past the age of socialising".^[12] According to Khan, his two sons have met Bushra, while he has also had time to get to know Bushra's children following their marriage.^[12] With regards to her marriage with Imran, Bibi has clarified that, contrary to some reports in the media, her marriage to Imran took place seven months after the ‘iddat period’ following the dissolution of her first marriage. Bibi has also clarified that she is not present on social media and any accounts attributed to her are fake.^[14]

Bushra was noted as the first niqab-wearing spouse of a Pakistani prime minister.^[15] The decision to wear a Niqab, Bibi said, is her personal choice in line with religious teachings and she is not seeking to impose it on anyone else.^[16] Shortly after Khan took office, Bibi was quoted by the media as being "afraid" and commented "power comes and goes".^[17] During the premiership of Imran Khan, she participated indirectly in political activities.^[11] According to close aides, she had an influence on major political decisions, such as ministerial appointments and during some political meetings, she would listen from behind a screen and provide guidance to Khan.^[11]

Bushra Bibi played a prominent role in the November 2024 PTI protest, entering Islamabad alongside thousands of PTI supporters who breached security barricades to demand Imran Khan's release. She addressed the crowd near D-Chowk, a central location close to parliament, and called for holding the protest there. According to sources, this decision contrasted with earlier instructions attributed to Imran Khan, which suggested gathering on the city's outskirts. When the government launched a midnight crackdown involving tear gas, rubber bullets, and arrests of protesters, she left the protest site. Her departure prompted criticism from some protesters who felt abandoned during the violent clashes.^[18][19] The protests turned violent, resulting in at least six deaths. PTI eventually ended the protests. Bushra Bibi's active involvement marked a shift from her previously private role.^[20]

On 4 February 2024, a Pakistani court sentenced Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi to seven years in prison for marrying during Bibi's Iddat period, in violation of Section 496 of the Pakistan Penal Code.^[21] The court, led by Senior Civil Judge Qudratullah, invalidated their initial marriage from 1 January 2018, and imposed a fine of Rs0.5 million on each.^[21] The court determined that a ceremony in February 2018, claimed by the couple as a non-marital religious event, was in fact a valid marriage based on witness testimonies and the couple's statements, despite their claim that it occurred after the Iddat period had ended.^[21] The legality of the couple's relationship from a subsequent marriage on 14 February 2018, was recognised by the court.^[21] However, requests by the couple to present defence witnesses were rejected as delay tactics.^[21] Testimony from Bushra Bibi's ex-husband, Khawar Fareed Manika, suggested an affair between Khan and Bibi since 2014, alleging that their early marriage prevented a possible reconciliation during the Iddat following their divorce.^[21]

The court concluded that Khan and Bibi had knowingly engaged in an unlawful marriage on 1 January 2018, resulting in their conviction under Section 496 of the Pakistan Penal Code, dismissing arguments on the applicability of judicial precedents on the Iddat period.^[21]

On 13 July 2024, the ADSJ Afzal Majoka passed the judgement for the immediate release of both Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi, stating that if they are not wanted in any other case, they should be released immediately.^[22]

Bushra Bibi was also given a 14-year sentence in Toshakhana case alongside her husband, Imran Khan, after both were convicted of illegally profiting from state gifts while he was in office.^[23]

On 25 April 2024, Mashal Yousafzai, a spokesperson for Bushra Bibi had claimed that Bibi was poisoned in prison and faced medical negligence after two-to-three drops of "toilet cleaner" were dropped in her meal on 24 February. Yousafzai had also claimed that an endoscopy revealed ulceration and inflammation in Bibi's stomach but authorities barred her from getting a blood test done.^[24]

She was granted bail on 23 October 2024^[25][26] and was released the next day.^[27]

In an exclusive interview to anchor person Shahzeb Khanzada, former husband of Bibi, Khawar Maneka revealed that Bibi was allegedly involved in an extramarital affair with the former prime minister Imran Khan during the time when Bibi was still married to Maneka.^[28] Maneka also alleges that Bibi married Khan before completion of her compulsory Iddah period required under Islamic family law. Maneka claims that he divorced Bibi on 14 November 2017, while Bibi and Khan married in January 2018.^[29] Bushra's Nikkah (marriage) with Imran Khan was dissolved on 3 February 2024 through a verdict by the Pakistani court in which Bushra was convicted and sentenced to seven years of imprisonment for the violation of Islamic family laws by marrying Imran Khan before completion of her Iddah period.^[30][31][32]