Imran Khan: From Cricket Batsman to Populist Captain Tabdeli of Pakistan

Yilmaz, Ihsan; Shakil, Kainat

doi:10.55271/lp0006

Cited by 15 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 2 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The AKP has been particularly successful in harnessing the negative emotions of the Turkish public. Yilmaz, for example, notes that negative emotions such as fear have been the dominant constitutive components of modern Turkish nationhood and among the deep conviction of Turkey's nation-builders, who attempted to create a homogenous nation of desired citizens by assimilating or eliminating ethnic, religious, and political minorities (Yilmaz, 2021a). Yilmaz argues that the AKP draws upon "fear, anger, rage, desire to own the homeland forever," a "need for a smile," a desire to "sacrifice blood for the country, and desire to enjoy freedom of the God-worshipping nation," along with feelings of "victimhood, resentment and siege mentalities" (Yilmaz, 2021a: 3) in order to build its political power and support for Erdogan's rule.…”

Section: Rise Of Populism In Turkey and Pakistanmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Since the start of his political career, Khan has targeted the opposition parties-the PML-N and PPP-as the corrupt elites Yilmaz & Shakil, 2021a;2021b). Khan's Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) has also targeted other political parties/leadership as friends of the West and India.…”

Section: Rise Of Populism In Turkey and Pakistanmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In India, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has, for the last two terms, created an antagonistic environment for non-Hindus and most of its discriminatory policies-from 'love jihad' to citizenship laws-are justified by claims that they are part of the revival of the great and ancient Hindu kingdoms (Saleem, Yilmaz and Chacko, 2021;Saleem, 2021). Muslim democracies have also seen an increase in populist politicians using religiously driven crises and promises (Yilmaz, 2021a;Yilmaz, Morieson, Demir, 2021;Yilmaz & Shakil, 2021c).…”

Section: Promisesmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Islamist Populists in Power: Promises, Compromises and Attacks on Democratic Institutions

Yilmaz¹,

Ahmed²,

Bashirov³

et al. 2022

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This paper comparatively examines the ruling religious populist governments in Turkey and Pakistan through a theoretical framework that focuses on populists’ promises, their compromises, and their attacks on democratic institutions. Through our three-legged framework, we examine how these religious populists behave in power and how strategic necessities, the realities of governing, and structural constraints shape their policies. Similar to the other populists in other parts of the world, before coming to power, Islamist populists make sweeping promises to the people and quick fixes to major problems of the country—most famously, quick and substantial economic development. While they may want to retain their uncompromising style and lofty goals, the realities of governing force populists to make serious compromises to their designated ‘enemies’ and on their values once they are in power. Finally, like other authoritarian politicians, Islamist populists attack formal institutions of democracy such as the judiciary, the media, and civil society; they politicize them, evacuate them, and eventually capture them from within. Keywords: Religion, populism, Islamism, authoritarianism, populists in power, democratic backsliding, Turkey, Pakistan

show abstract

Section: Rise Of Populism In Turkey and Pakistanmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Rise Of Populism In Turkey and Pakistanmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Promisesmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Islamist Populists in Power: Promises, Compromises and Attacks on Democratic Institutions

Yilmaz¹,

Ahmed²,

Bashirov³

et al. 2022

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…After retiring from international men's cricket, Khan took to politics. In his initial years, very few took Khan seriously; many dismissed him as an idealist (Yilmaz & Shakil, 2021b). His narratives were focused on human development, which were backed by his history of philanthropic work in Pakistan.…”

Section: The Case Of Khanmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In early 2010s, Khan rose to prominence due to his direct attacks on corrupt mainstream political parties. Khan's narrative was that of 'tabdeli' (change) which he compared to a "tsunami" bringing much needed change to Pakistani politics (Yilmaz & Shakil, 2021b). Khan rose to prominence during a politically precarious time: the same dynastic-led political parties were winning elections despite a range of corruption charges blemishing their records.…”

Section: The Case Of Khanmentioning

confidence: 99%

Manufacturing Civilisational Crises: Instrumentalisation of Anti-Western Conspiracy Theories for Populist Authoritarian Resilience in Turkey and Pakistan

Yilmaz¹,

Shakil²

2022

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This paper looks at the importance of ‘crisis events’ used by leaders employing populist civilisational populism in Muslim democracies. While populism is widely acknowledged and studied as part of early twentieth century political developments, various aspects remain unexplored. One feature is how populists make use of a crisis. While populists do benefit from social and political rifts, this paper goes a step further and argues that civilisationalist populists create imaginary and exaggerated ‘crises’ to sustain and prolong their relevance/position in power as well as justify their undemocratic actions. Using the case studies of Turkey (Recep Tayyip Erdogan) and Pakistan (Imran Khan) allows for a comparison to be drawn between two different leaders seeking to maintain power by using their position to either create civilizationalist crises or to frame ordinary crises as civilisational. The findings highlight that despite different political scenarios and outcomes, both these populist leaders gained political support by creating crises. We find that in most cases, populists exaggerate pre-existing insecurities and events to their benefit. The overblown claims and conspiratorial scenarios aid populists in creating a niche for their narratives by reaffirming their populist categorisation of societies. At the same time, the findings bring forth the troubling issues of the social-political cost of these Islamist civilisationalist populists.

show abstract

Sport Heroes and Leadership

Gammon

2023

Encyclopedia of Heroism Studies

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Imran Khan: From Cricket Batsman to Populist Captain Tabdeli of Pakistan

Cited by 15 publications

References 2 publications

Islamist Populists in Power: Promises, Compromises and Attacks on Democratic Institutions

Islamist Populists in Power: Promises, Compromises and Attacks on Democratic Institutions

Manufacturing Civilisational Crises: Instrumentalisation of Anti-Western Conspiracy Theories for Populist Authoritarian Resilience in Turkey and Pakistan

Sport Heroes and Leadership

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About