What became known as the вЂњRushdie AffairвЂќ led to BritainвЂ™s Pakistani community being commonly seen as a Muslim community unable and unwilling to integrate into British life. Then, later, author Salman Rushdie was the subject of a fatwa for his book, The Satanic Verses. Controversial headteacher Ray Honeyford fuelled division with comments about the damaging affects of multiculturalism.

This was the decade which saw Pakistanis in Britain hit the headlines as a вЂњproblem communityвЂќ. Described by BradfordвЂ™s vice chancellor as вЂњ a wonderful role model for our studentsвЂќ, Khan has been a hero for diaspora Pakistanis since his cricketing heyday in the 1980s. Khan served as the chancellor of Bradford University between 2005-2014, in the British city which has one of the highest concentrations of citizens of Pakistani ancestry. He billed himself as the вЂњanti-status quoвЂќ candidate вЂ“ anti-corruption, anti-nepotism. Khan is disparaging about this legacy: вЂњNever has a countryвЂ™s ruling elite, for personal benefit вЂ¦ betrayed their people as much as in PakistanвЂќ. In its 70 years, it has been ruled intermittently by political dynasties and the military. Dynasty breakerД®lectoral choice has been scant in the PakistanвЂ™s short history. But his perseverance has now paid off вЂ“ he will now take the helm of a country which he claims has been left on the brink of failure after years of corruption. His political journey has been a long one. After cricketing success, he turned his hand to politics, founding his Party for Justice, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in 1996. He was captain of PakistanвЂ™s cricket team when it won the World Cup in 1992. Khan has played the part of leader before. An Oxbridge education has, of course, begun the political career of many a world leader, including the founding father of Pakistan, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, and a number of successors. вЂњ YouвЂ™ve got to go sometimeвЂќ is his response вЂ“ and heвЂ™d rather go for a cause.Д«orn in Lahore in 1952, Khan was educated at the prestigious Aitchison College вЂ“ a relic of Empire nestled in the pleasant green land of the Punjab вЂ“ before going on to study PPE at Oxford. On death and politics, Khan is casual, indeed. Nevertheless, the man elected to be the countryвЂ™s next prime minster, Imran Khan, has spent more than two decades seeking the office. In the aftermath of 9/11, Time magazine described governing Pakistan as one of the worldвЂ™s toughest jobs. The countryвЂ™s first prime minister, Liaquat Ali Khan, was assassinated вЂ“ and a number of subsequent leaders have shared the same fate, variously being executed by order of the state, blown up on planes and at political rallies. Being cavalier about death is a prerequisite in Pakistani politics.

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