Dubai: A Pakistani cobbler did not hesitate to pay Rs50,000 (Dh1250) fine to get back snakeskin shoe he made for Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan.
“It is not a small fine to pay for a cobbler but he did it out of love for Prime Minister Imran Khan,” said a friend of a famous cobbler Noorudin Shinwari who makes special sandals known as ‘Kaptaan Chappal’.
“I have got the confiscated sandal back after paying a fine of Rs50,000 and now I will present it to Prime Minister Imran Khan as an Eid gift,” sad Shinwari.
Shinwari, cobbler in Peshawar, got the shoe back on Monday after paying a fine of Rs50,000 a day after Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Wildlife Department confiscated the snakeskin sandals he made, Dawn news reported. He said that he made the sandals for Prime Minister Imran Khan,
The department took action against Shinwari, who became famous for making Kaptaan Chappal, after the pictures of snakeskin sandals went viral on social media, saying that if the chappals were indeed made of snakeskin then the cobbler would have to face legal consequences as well as a fine.
Since Imran is commonly called ‘Kaptaan’ (Captain) by his supporters, he named the sandal after him.
Sub Divisional Forest Officer Amir Ali confirmed the media that the cobbler was slapped a fine of Rs50,000 after it was found that the sandals were made of python leather.
“The shopkeeper has no documents to establish that the snakeskin was imported,” he said.
Shinwari was also warned against using the skin of wild animals in the future and made to sign an affidavit attesting that he would not use the skin of wildlife creatures again.
On Sunday, the government had confiscated the shoe to verify if it was made of snakeskin in violation of local rules and regulations.
Shinwari claimed that the snakeskin had been sent from the United States to the shop for two pairs; one for the donor and one for the Kaptaan (Imran Khan).
Back in 2015, the traditional Peshawari chappal or sandal was launched by Nooruddin as ‘Kaptaan Chappal.’
“The special double-soled Peshawari chappal had been in fashion since long but when I gifted a pair of this especially designed new brand to Imran Khan on his wedding, the shoe became an instant favourite with all and sundry,” he said.
– a sandal styled footwear originating in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa region – has been around for aeons, it got a new lease of life after it was popularised as the footwear of choice for Prime Minister Imran Khan. Now, the premier may be about to get his hands on an exclusive and exotic pair of the sandals which are being specially prepared by a Peshawar native.
Known as Baba Shinwari, who use to make the traditional sandals in the Namak Mandi area of Peshawar for a host of clients — including Imran, has been given a display centre at the National Heritage Museum – Lok Virsa in Islamabad.
Shinwari and his son Islam Khan, who make the chappal’s at the display centre explained that Imran was their leader and that they were honoured to make footwear for him. These chappals have gained a huge following particularly amongst Imran’s supporters and members of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) are frequently seen wearing them especially when they attend party meetings.
Peshwari chappal is the most used sandal by people espeically Pashtuns in Pakistan and around the world. These are also quite popular amongst foreigners coming to Pakistan. Recentl, Darren Sammy, famous West Indian cricketer also got Kaptaan chappal. The sandle is mostly worn with traditional Pakistani national dress shalwar kamiz but youngsters also wear this with jeans as fashion statement.
Ali Nawaz Aawan, the special advisor to the Prime Minister on the affairs of the Capital Development Authority (CDA), said that the Kaptaan chappal has turned into a brand around the world.