FROM RAGS TO RICHES Story of Sharif’s Dynasty as told by Lahorites

I OFTEN RECEIVE ANONYMOUS POSTS AND ARTICLES WHICH YOU MAY AGREE WITH OR NOT, ARE OF IMMENSE ACADEMIC VALUE AND WORTH READING. ONE OF SUCH ARTICLES I AM REPRODUCING HEREUNDER.
All old residents of Lahore are aware of this, there is much more to say, this is just a bare bones narrative only. Have known Nawaz since 1964 from school and Shahbaz from 1968 as a class fellow in college.
11/9/17, 11:56:23 AM: ?+92 300 2258079?: This is a harsh narration about the Sharif’s and how they became so rich and powerful. This is based on narrations from people who have known the family from the time they came to Pakistan, from people who know them well, both civilian and military and what is now available on public record. I am merely narrating what I have heard.
The Sharifs of Ram Gully day Naal Aali Gully
– Haider Mehdi
Nawaz Sharif’s dad was known by many names.
First as “Mian duaani aala” because he used to bribe the peons outside the government offices with a “Two Anna Coin” Duaani as we called it, a square coin with rounded edges. Then as “Mian Uthanni” bribing junior clerks with the eight Anna coin. Then “Mian Gutter Chor” as they would buy back the “gutter covers” from the legions of young boys they paid to steal the gutters they themselves supplied to Lahore Municipality.
The above and some of the later mentioned early history of the Sharif’s is as narrated by a friend whose family and Nawaz’s were neighbours in Ram Gali. According to my friend, the Sharif family didn’t live in main Ram Gali but another even smaller Gali. As my friend puts it “oaay Yaar Ram Gali day naal aali Gali. …”. He swears that Nawaz Sharif’s grandfather was a flower garland seller in the Amritsar Heera Mundi. Absolutely nothing wrong in selling flowers to patrons visiting brothels and watching mujras, to make an honest living, I said.
He had seven sons. Three of them, brothers of Mian Sharif, Nawaz’s father, first came to Lahore after partition and worked as unskilled laborers. They then got the other brothers to join them and after a few years of hard labor and some questionable practices, Mian Sharif who was the smartest amongst them with the help of another gentlemen (name unknown) put together a small iron Bhatti (an iron smelter) to smelt iron called “Daygee loya”, loosely translated meaning “iron smelted in a container”. Common grapevine in those days was that they got most of their raw materials by stealing gutter covers and railway line tracks. Anyone who had a “hot iron” to sell, the Sharif’s would buy it. Pun intended!
During this period they also made a tubewell which they managed to install at one of Nawab Kalabagh’s farms. The Nawab liked the performance of this tube well and it also helped that Mian Sharif would literally live day in and out outside the Nawab’s farm ready to fix the tubewell in case a fault developed. In those days he traveled on a cycle. The tubewell was a fine piece of machinery and the Nawab referred him to other landlords as well as installing more of the Sharif tubewells on his own lands. Mian Sharif’s cycle now became a scooter and the money started to flow. One of course one must admire how the elder Sharif worked very hard to keep his customers happy.
He then used his connections with Nawab Kalabagh to be introduced to Lahore Municipality where he earned the “Mian Duanni” and “Mian Uthanni” monikers. Through his charm and guile and humility and bribery (Don’t blame Nawaz and Shahbaz and Maryam, Hassan and Hussain and Hamza it’s in the upbringing and the DNA) he received an order to supply gutter covers in Lahore. It was here that Mian Sharif and the brothers, now all part of the business called “Ittefaq” got this brilliant idea to employ young kids to steal the same gutter covers they had earlier supplied to Lahore Municipality. These were then resold back to the Municipality appropriately varnished and repainted. Of course many palms and hands were greased there as well. That’s how Mian Sharif acquired his third moniker of “Mian Gutter Chor”. From there it was a very similar and typical Malik Riaz type of “wheels to files” approach in getting lucrative government contracts and obliging anybody and everybody with everything and anything.
Like many business people in Pakistan I personally know today, Mian Sharif and brothers saw absolutely no conflict in displaying personal piety, beard and all, Juma prayers, giving to Masjid charities, and simultaneously, lying, cheating, stealing, bribing and dealing in all sorts of corruption to get a business contract or a deal. Corruption for these guys had nothing to do with personal values. Their God of business was very different to the Allah of the Mosque
It is therefore no surprise how frequently we hear the use of “Alhamdulillah” which Nawaz Sharif and his sons, Hassan and Hussain and daughter, Maryam, preface their dark lies with and with such a straight face that one is just stunned at their audacity and complete absence of remorse or shame. Honestly It still jars one’s senses, even though I’m no snow white, to hear and see this family use the name of the Almighty in such a manner, unafraid of the consequences either here and or in the Hereafter. The Panamagate laid bare in all its ugliness, their entire personal value system
Anyways back to the bootleggers. Business flourished and the family now moved to Model Town. Like all kids of nouveau rich people, Nawaz in his late teens was a pampered floozy. Wanted to become an actor. Couldn’t. Then a police officer. Couldn’t. Had a very average academic record and his major job was to just accompany his dad everywhere he went and stand silently by in the background and smile and nod intelligently. Shahbaz even then was the smart guy and handled major parts of the business. But Nawaz. Most times he would drive people who Mian Sharif wanted to oblige in their Mercedes. This was to show how much these people Mian Sharif valued and hence would send his elder son as a driver.
One such person who traveled with MNS from Lahore to Raiwind and back to witness the tableeghee ijhthima at Raiwind narrated the following. “I had expressed a desire to the late Majeed Nizami of Nawai Waqt newspaper to witness the Ijhthima of the Tableeghee Jamaat, having heard so much about it. Majeed Nizami saheb picked up the phone and called Mian Sharif and told him that a few close friends of his, mentioning the narrators name, wanted to visit Raiwind. “Tomorrow morning you’ll have a car to take you gentlemen to Raiwind”, said Nizami saheb, as he put down the phone.
(Continue……)