Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Senator Bahramand Tangi has objected to the provincial authorities’ decision to not call personnel of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Police by informal names, highlighting that one of the names approved for the cops is that of Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan’s pet dog.
According to media reports and a written order issued by KP Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Headquarters, a copy of which is available with The Current, no informal names such as “mama ji”, “khan ji” and “pehlwana” will be used for the police, which “undermine the sacrifices rendered by the force”.
Instead, the personnel will only be addressed by their own names or by approved nicknames that are “jawaan“, “sheru” and “sahib“.
With the order making headlines, it drew a strong reaction from the PPP leader who said that “Sheru [tiger]” was the name of one of PM Imran’s dogs.
“This is unethical,” he said in a statement, adding that the personnel of KP police weren’t employees of Bani Gala.
IMRAN & HIS SHERU:
The premier has had a total of five pet dogs, all of which have been a focus of interest in several media reports.
In 2011, former military ruler General (r) Pervez Musharraf gifted a puppy to Imran before the former’s self-imposed exile. The puppy was born at Musharraf’s farmhouse, and according to the premier’s former wife Reham Khan, his name was Sheru, who was an Alsatian.
In September 2014, Imran in a television talk show revealed that Sheru had died three months earlier. However, in April 2018, reports and social media rumours emerged that he had removed Sheru from his Bani Gala residence on the advice of his third and current wife Bushra Bibi.
According to local media, a new quarter was then built for the dog outside the main residence building, as his wife was not comfortable with pet animals inside the house.
However, the premier, during a press conference had later denied the media reports, saying that Sheru died three to four years ago.
