Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) activist Khadijah Shah on Tuesday announced she will relinquish her U.S. citizenship after accepting the party’s nomination for a reserved seat for women.
“Making the decision to relinquish my U.S. citizenship, which guarantees freedom, safety, and opportunity, was not easy,” she wrote in a posting on Instagram. “However, Pakistan is my motherland, the place I call home, and the country where I’ve built my life. I cannot give up on it and my people,” she added.
“I’ve witnessed and personally experienced unimaginable injustice over the last year-and-a-half, but that adversity instilled in me a sense of purpose,” she continued, referring to her incarceration after the May 9, 2023 riots. “I’m driven forward by the desire to make a difference for Pakistan,” she added.
Shah, who has her own fashion label Elan, said she was honored to be nominated for a reserved seat by Imran Khan, who she described as her “lifelong hero.” She said she hoped to live up his expectations and those of her fellow citizens.
“Until my dual nationality issue is resolved, I’ve nominated Mehrunnisa Sajjad to represent me,” she said, emphasizing the lawyer was hired “after careful consideration” because she “embodies what I hope every Pakistani woman can have the opportunity to become.” The Oxford graduate, per Shah, has dedicated her career to advocating for the marginalized and downtrodden in Pakistan, often pro bono.
“Like me, Mehrunnisa is passionate about fighting for the rights of the marginalized, establishing genuine democracy, and driving progress in Pakistan,” she said. “I’m proud to have nominated such an exceptional young Pakistani woman to represent PTI and myself in Parliament. We are committed to working together to make a meaningful impact for our country and party,” she added.
Earlier this month, a majority verdict of the Supreme Court ruled that the PTI was eligible for reserved seats for women and minorities, and allowed the party 15 days to have independent candidates declare their party affiliation. While the ruling has facilitate the return of the PTI to Parliament, it has pretty much wiped out the Sunni Ittehad Council, which a majority of PTI-backed independents had joined instead.