Bilawal Bhutto’s sarcastic jab at Nawaz Sharif is all over social media

A political moment from Gilgit is making rounds on social media after Pakistan Peoples Party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari took a sharp and sarcastic swipe at Pakistan Muslim League-N supremo Nawaz Sharif during a public gathering.

Addressing the crowd, Bilawal Bhutto remarked, “Mazdooron ko malik banaya, milon ka malik banaya. Issi tareekay se quamain taraki karti hain.”. A line that quickly caught attention online and sparked political debate.

The comment was widely interpreted as a pointed reference to Nawaz Sharif’s family background and business legacy, which has long been part of Pakistan’s political discourse.

Nawaz Sharif’s rise is closely linked to the Sharif family’s industrial roots. His father, Mian Muhammad Sharif, founded the Ittefaq Group, which began as a small foundry and later expanded into one of Lahore’s most well-known industrial conglomerates. Over the decades, the family business grew into steel, sugar, agriculture, and transport sectors, eventually becoming a major economic enterprise in Punjab.

As Nawaz Sharif transitioned into politics, the business empire continued under the wider Sharif family, drawing both praise for its growth and criticism from political opponents.

Over the years, the family’s wealth has been repeatedly scrutinised in political debates and accountability proceedings, with opponents questioning the scale and speed of its expansion. The Sharif family, however, has consistently maintained that their wealth was built legally over time through family-run businesses that date back to the 1970s.

Bilawal’s latest remark has once again brought that long-running political narrative back into the spotlight, with supporters and critics both weighing in across social media.