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'Imran's split disgraceful, and unethical'

DUBAI - "Disgraceful and unethical!" This is how Muzaffar Naqvi, a Pakistani fashion designer, described Imran Khan's decision to file for divorce from the beautiful Jemima Goldsmith, his British wife of nine years.

"I think Imran took Jemima for a ride all along these years and once he got bored and tired of her, he decided to file for divorce. Also, since her father barred her from having any access to his billions of dollars by putting that clause in his will, Imran must have finally smartened up and decided to end his sham of a marriage," she said.

So it seems that Imran, the playboy of yesteryear, has been stumped yet again, but this time at the wedding pitch.

Khaleej Times spoke to a cross section of Pakistani and British expatriates, and the majority felt that Imran was to be solely blamed for the breakdown of his and Jemima's marriage and expressed their sympathy for her.

Fauzia Mohammed, a self proclaimed feminist, said that Jemima gave up her whole life for Imran, including her lavish life style and the love of her parents, and he repayed her by continuing his extramarital affairs with other women.

"Jemima had to put up with her philandering and lying husband for the past nine years and if I was in Jemima's position, I would have definitely filed for divorce earlier. Not only did Imran rob her of her identity but also took away the basic bond that keeps a marriage alive: Trust. He lied to her time and again and I'm glad that she decided to get out of this shoddy relationship!," she said.

Imran has in the past enjoyed the reputation of being a playboy and his recent admission to being the father of British heiress Sita White's daughter saw a new twist in their story, many of which say, might be the turning point in their relationship.

Said Claire Malcolm, a sales engineer: "Apart from the total lifestyle change that Jemima had to cope up with by living in Pakistan, she also had to put up with an unfaithful husband! The poor woman deserves all our sympathy as she stayed millions of miles away from her family and friends for the love of her life, who turned out to be not only a failure in their marriage but also in his political career! The Sita White scandal was just too much and I can't see how any woman would want to stay with such a blatant liar".

Many people also felt that Imran's involvement in Pakistani politics could have been the triggering factor for Jemima to leave Pakistan and go back to the UK.

"If only Imran had invested as much time and energy in his marriage rather than on his political ambitions, Jemima would have probably stayed back. But since he obviously did not think it important enough to spend time with his family and children, he just gave Jemima a very good reason to walk out of the marriage. I would say three cheers to her for taking this bold step!" said Trevor M., an accounts executive.

Right from the beginning of their marriage, cynics said that their marriage would not last, as the differences were too enormous.

"Jemima was very young when she got married to Imran, and the age difference was bound to crop up sooner or later. Apart from the age difference, the fact that she was very wealthy could have also been the main motive for Imran to marry her. She was the loser in this relationship right from the beginning and this was going to happen sooner or later," said Iqbal Saeed, a businessman.