In her very first interview after the high-profile divorce with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chairman Imran Khan, Reham Khan has said she was a victim of a witch hunt in Pakistan.
“A conspiracy was hatched against me,” Reham said in an interview with British newspaper Sunday Times.
Dressed in white for the interview in Charlotte Street Hotel in central London, the broadcast journalist described the “painful” and “disturbing experience” following her divorce during which she has been accused of “hitting” him, “poisoning him with rat poison” and being an “MI6 spy”.
Claiming that she has been the victim of a “witch-hunt”, Reham said her marriage to the cricketer-turned-politician has been an example of “here is a woman”, let’s “demonise her”, “vilify her” and “burn her at the stake”.
Going back to how the marriage started, the TV journalist recalled Imran asked her for her parents’ names. “May be he wanted to ask his pir (spritual leader) whether he should marry me or not,” she said.
“The second time I met him, he proposed to me,” she added.
But everything was not as easy. Reham claimed a PTI worker used to text her before her marriage to Imran and she even complained about him. “Imran’s sisters staunchly opposed our marriage but he assured me everything will be fine afterwards,” she added.
And as soon as the marriage started it was all downhill as Reham claimed the two turned out to be of completely “different personalities.”
“Imran is not romantic at all, he would only want to talk about politics,” she added.
“He wasn’t even interested in matters of the house,” she said, recalling how his closet was a complete mess.
“I ordered a new closet and clothes for him which made him very happy,” the TV journalist said. Further, she added that Imran did not care how he looked when he stepped out of the house.
“Even his fridge was empty as he would live on lentils and porridge.”
“There was a boy who used to work in the kitchen but he spent most of his time watching TV,” she added.
In another startling revelation, the broadcast journalist said Imran was not fond of having children around him, forcing her to confine her three children with her first husband to a room. “My children would not even go to the kitchen,” she said.
Speaking about Imran’s infamous dogs whom she has been accused of mistreating, Reham said, “There were always dogs in our bedroom. One of them grew fond of me.”
Moving on to Imran’s party members, Reham said, “PTI members did not want to work with me.”
“A senior party leader once told me I look better in the kitchen and was married to Imran to make rotis,” she alleged.
Further, Reham claimed when she was made the official ambassador for street children in Peshawar, party members thought she was trying to “take over.”
The broadcast journalist also claimed Imran is living a lonely life and “has no friends.” “It is very difficult to live with Imran as he has been living for the past 54 years,” she lamented.
The TV journalist said despite being married to the PTI chief for 10 months she had “no rights.”
Reham also regretted that she was divorced in the “wrong manner.”
“He only messaged me saying ‘talaq’ thrice, which upset me,” she said, adding that she was later sent divorce papers through Imran’s friend.
“Our marriage was neither registered in Pakistan not Britain,” she added.
Since announcing their split on October 30, Imran and Reham have been forced to make several clarifications as many reports regarding their divorce have circulated in the media.
Everything from poisoning attempts to domestic violence (Imran being the alleged victim), family feuds, and even the unfair treatment of Imran’s dogs (yes, dogs), have been reported so far.
Since the start of their marriage, Reham made headlines for all the wrong reasons. Soon after the couple married, Reham’s ex-husband, NHS psychiatrist Dr Ijaz Rehman strongly denied allegations he had mistreated her during their marriage. Further, Dr Rehman claimed she used him “like toilet paper to clean up her image” after she found herself harshly criticised by traditionalists in Pakistan who saw Imran’s bride as far too Westernised.
