The former Prime Minister Imran Khan has disapproved of renaming Peshawar’s Arbab Niaz Stadium after him. His sister, Aleema Khan, informed on Tuesday after meeting with Imran Khan in Adiala Jail.
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Government decided to rename the stadium after Imran Khan in a bid to honor the country’s legends and recognize his services to cricket in Pakistan.
“I don’t like anything to be named after me. So the stadium’s name should be reverted to the original,” Khan told Aleema.
He said he does not favor such changes and that national assets should be preserved with their original identity. Aleema Khan added that Imran Khan said he did not do such a thing himself and does not want anyone to do it with him.
PMLN Additional Secretary Information Arbab Khizer Hayat has praised the decision of Imran Khan to revert the name of the stadium to its original form. Khizer Hayat called the decision a positive step, terming it a victory for all political parties and the people of Peshawar. Speaking to the media, Arbab Khizer Hayat criticized Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur, saying that his attempt to rename the stadium had failed.
Last month, the KP Government decided to rename the stadium after Imran Khan through an official notification.
Read more: KP govt to rename Peshawar stadium after Imran Khan
Currently, the Arbab Niaz Stadium is the only stadium in the entire province. Chief Minister Imran Khan signed the summary by the sports department, proposing the renaming of the Arbab Niaz Stadium. The matter will now be placed before the provincial cabinet for its approval.
Sports minister Syed Fakhar Jahan told local media that the renaming of the stadium was beyond politics as Imran Khan was the biggest name in the country’s sporting history. He said that the government should have named Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium after Imran Khan, however, they only named an enclosure after him.
The statement added that the stadium was constructed by the Municipal Corporation Peshawar through the Peshawar Development Authority. “Initially, the stadium had a seating capacity of 5,000 spectators and a small pavilion for local cricket matches,” it said.