ISLAMABAD: A Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) representative on Monday said reports that Chairman Imran Khan’s family is putting pressure on him to marry someone from within the family are “not true”.

In response to an article published in The Express Tribune, founding member of PTI Naeem-ul-Haque in a telephone conversation with Dawn said, “Yes, his sisters have been asking him for five years now to get married, but there is no one in sight and no specific person in mind."

The Tribune article quoted a family source as saying that Imran’s sisters were eager for him to wed in order to avoid “personal attacks” and had allegedly selected a girl from within the family.

"There are thousands of women young and old who would wish to marry him!" Haque exclaimed, "but he is focused on something else [changing the system]. This time is crucial for him politically."

The cricketer-turned-politician was previously married to English journalist and activist Jemima Goldsmith for nine years. The marriage ended amicably in 2004 with Goldsmith stating that she was unable to adapt to life in Pakistan.

She has campaigned against drone strikes in Pakistan, as well as against the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.