The Rise and Fall of Bilawal Bhutto Zardari
The youngest son of Benazir Bhutto, Bilawal was born in 1985 to his father Asif Ali Zardari and Safar Ali Lakhani when the family was living in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Shortly after his birth, the family returned to Pakistan and settled in Karachi, where Bilawal attended St.
Patrick’s Academy as well as Westminster School Dubai with his older brother Aseefa Bhutto Zardari. It was during these years that he acquired his fluency in English and Urdu.
Early life
Bilawal was born in Karachi on September 21, 1989 to Asif Ali Zardari, who was then a prominent politician.
His grandfather Zulfikar Ali Bhutto served as President before being executed by General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq in 1979.
His mother, Benazir Bhutto, served as Prime Minister twice – both times were in during her father’s era. She was assassinated in 2007 when he was just 8 years old.
Following his mother’s death, he and his family were placed under house arrest for years; during which time they moved around a lot to avoid detection.
They finally left Pakistan in 2013 after many attempts at amnesty failed. In 2015, he married Aseefa Bhutto Zardari, daughter of former Pakistani president Asif Ali Zardari.
They have one child together named Bakhtawar (born 2016). He is also related to several other political figures including former prime minister Nawaz Sharif (his maternal uncle) and former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi (his paternal uncle).
Bilawal has been involved with politics since his childhood days but only formally joined politics after completing his studies at Oxford University where he received a Bachelors degree in Philosophy Politics & Economics.
He was also elected as President of Pakistan Peoples Party Youth Wing (PPPY) on March 23, 2018.
He is currently serving as Member National Assembly from Sindh’s constituency NA-200, Lyari Town, Karachi. He is also Chairman PPP Pakistan Youth Forum and Patron-in-Chief PPP Social Welfare Foundation (SWF).
Bilawal Bhutto Zardari was born on September 21, 1989 to Asif Ali Zardari, who was then a prominent politician.
His grandfather Zulfikar Ali Bhutto served as President before being executed by General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq in 1979.
Bilawal is one of five children (three sons and two daughters) born to his parents.
Education
A private schoolboy upbringing, a degree in politics from Jesus College, Oxford. Perhaps you could describe his early life? The murder of his mother, Benazir Bhutto, in 2007 obviously meant that he was catapulted into a political role.
What was he like then? And how has he changed since taking over as leader of Pakistan’s largest party? He is often portrayed as an ineffective leader who struggles to make decisions and lacks charisma.
Is there any truth to these accusations? Or is it simply because he lacks experience at such a young age?
Aged 28, Bilawal became chairman of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) on 24 September 2013 after his father Asif Ali Zardari stepped down as party chairman due to being elected President of Pakistan.
Since becoming PPP chairman, Bilawal has been accused by many political analysts for not being able to control or bring unity among PPP leadership. He was also blamed for weakening PPP in Sindh Province where it is in power since 2008.
The defeat of PPP candidate in Karachi mayoral election, 2015 was considered a major blow to Bilawal's image as he had campaigned aggressively for winning Karachi through mayoralty elections against MQM candidate Waseem Akhtar who won with a big margin.
On 11 January 2016, during an interview with BBC Urdu, he announced that he would launch a new faction called Bilawal Bhutto Group which will be separate from both Benazir Bhutto and Asif Ali Zardari's factions of PPP.
He said that his faction will remain in opposition at national level but would support coalition governments at provincial level. He named Syed Yousaf Raza Gillani as his preferred prime minister of Pakistan if PPP comes into power.
His efforts did not yield any results when none of his candidates were able to win any seat in Senate elections held on 3 March 2016.
After losing all senate seats, he left for Dubai with no public appearance till date. Many leaders have started calling him Bilawal No Show.
On 17 October 2017, Bilawal returned from Dubai and launched a campaign tour across Sindh aiming to revive Peoples Party's popularity before 2018 general election.
His first public rally was held in Sukkur where he addressed thousands of party workers and supporters.
In his speech he criticised Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf government for failing to bring development in Karachi, poor law & order situation in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, weak foreign policy and deteriorating relations with China.
He also said that he will lead PPP into 2018 elections alone without any alliance with other parties or political groups.
Political career
2007–present: Provincial Chief Minister 2008–2012: Deputy Leader of Pakistan Peoples Party, Chairman Executive Committee PPP 2012: Member of National Assembly Pakistan, Chairman Youth Wing PPP 2013–present:
President PPP 2016-Present - President All Progressives Parties (APPC) Bilawal House Karachi. Bilawal was born on 21 September 1988 in Karachi to Asif Ali Zardari and Benazir Bhutto, who were both assassinated in 2007.
His paternal grandfather, former Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, was also executed in 1979 for authorising a military coup against his own government.
Bilawal is named after his maternal grandfather, former President of Pakistan and founder of the PPP Mujibur Rahman. He has two sisters, Bakhtawar and Aseefa.
He attended The Cathedral & John Connon School in Mumbai, India before moving back to Pakistan to attend The British School in Islamabad.
He then went on to attend Oxford University where he studied Philosophy Politics & Economics at St Edmund Hall.
In 2017 he married Aseefai Nawab in Lahore which took place at Mughal Gardens which was followed by a grand reception at Alhamra Art Centre.
Election campaign
With Bilawal's performance in Karachi, many political experts now predict that his party could be propelled to power by its vote bank in Sindh.
However, his manifesto focuses heavily on democracy within Pakistan but does not give any real focus on specific foreign policy issues.
The new leader comes into a country which is seen as one of America's closest allies, yet he has never spoken in favour of US intervention in Pakistani affairs, or against it. In fact, he has said that Pakistan should try to protect its sovereignty by seeking help from both friends and foes.
This could mean anything—but it also means very little. At just twenty-five years old, Bilawal is still too young to lead a nation but his campaign tactics have already proved successful.
It remains to be seen whether he can keep up with them once he reaches office. Only time will tell if he will become another Pakistani Princess or if he will create a legacy of his own.
Bilawal Bhutto Zardari was born on September 21st 1990 in Karachi, Pakistan to former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto and Asif Ali Zardari.
He was educated at Oxford University where he received an undergraduate degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics (PPE).
While studying at Oxford University, Bilawal was exposed to politics at an early age; both his mother and grandfather were murdered while they were campaigning for elections.
During these difficult times for him personally, he often spoke out about how important it was for him to continue their legacy and work towards bringing about change in Pakistan.
In 2011, Bilawal became co-chairman of his mothers party after she was assassinated. In 2013, he announced that he would be running for a seat in parliament during general elections scheduled for May 11th 2013.
His father backed his decision to run despite being advised against it by senior members of his own party because they believed that running as a candidate would put too much pressure on him considering that he had only just turned twenty-two years old.
On July 18th 2013, during election campaign rallies held in Karachi, violence broke out between supporters from various political parties resulting in over fifty deaths and more than three hundred injuries.
Karsaz bombing
On August 16, 2015, a suicide attack occurred at a campaign rally held by Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) leader Bilawal Bhutto Zardari in Karsaz, Karachi. The attack killed 128 people and injured more than 180.
This was considered to be one of the deadliest terrorist attacks in Pakistan's history.
A day after, on August 17, it was reported that ISIL had claimed responsibility for the attack via Amaq News Agency.
[2] The attacker detonated his explosive vest among PPP supporters during an election campaign rally which was addressed by PPP Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto Zardari in Liaquatabad Town of Karachi.
[3][4] Following two other bombings in Mastung and Khuzdar earlier that month, as well as another bombing earlier that year in January targeting another.
PPP rally killing 149 people, it is suspected that these bombings were part of a series of coordinated attacks against the political party ahead of elections scheduled for later in 2018.
Investigations are currently underway to determine who carried out these attacks and why they did so.
Senate career
In 2013, Zardari was appointed a member of Pakistan's Senate. After his term as president ended in September 2013, he continued to serve as co-chairman of Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians.
In August 2016, PPP announced that Zardari would return to lead the party after 10 years out. Upon his return, he claimed: I am not returning for power but for service.
He is currently serving as Chairman of Pakistan People's Party.
He also became chairman of PPP on 23 March 2018 after Benazir Bhutto’s death.
He is married to Aseefa Bhutto Zardari who has recently been elected as Member National Assembly from Larkana Constituency.
His son Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has recently been elected Chairman of PPPP Youth Wing at national convention held in Lahore on 18th December 2017.
Bilawal is expected to become next party head following his mother’s assassination and father’s imprisonment by General Musharraf regime in 2007.
He has recently been released from house arrest on December 25, 2017 after nine years.
He has called for protests against Nawaz Sharif and called him a traitor for working with Trump administration.
He is grandson of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto who was assassinated along with her brother Murtaza during election campaign in Rawalpindi on 27th December 2007 by an extremist named Malik Mumtaz Hussain Qadri .
Bilawal's great grandfather was former Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto who was hanged by Gen.
Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq after being found guilty of authorizing the murder of a political opponent named Nawab Mohammad Ahmad Khan Kasuri in 1979.
Bilawal’s father, Asif Ali Zardari, is currently serving as co-chairman of Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians after his term as President ended in September 2013.
He is son of Benazir Bhutto and Asif Ali Zardari.
He has two sisters Bakhtawar, Aseefa and one brother Mir Murtaza who died on 18th August 1996 during an armed confrontation with police forces near Larkana when he was only 11 years old.
His sister Bakhtawar married to Suleman Dawood son of billionaire businessman Dawood Ibrahim on 15 December 2015 in Karachi.
Death in an attack
Bhutto's mother, Benazir, was assassinated in a gun-and-bomb attack on December 27, 2007 while leaving an election rally in Rawalpindi.
She had just stepped off her helicopter when gunmen fired at her from a nearby rooftop. Bilawal was nearby with his grandfather when he heard gunfire and realized his mother had been hit.
He rushed to her side as she was being ferried to a hospital by helicopter where she died.
The attack came days after President Pervez Musharraf pledged that he would hand over power to restore democracy to Pakistan but also warned that internal problems could delay him.
Benazir was buried in her ancestral village near Larkana. I'm not afraid, Bilawal said before he went into hiding for several months following his mother's death. If I have to die, I will die like my mother.
Bilawal is now working under Murtaza Bhutto son of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto (Father) who is running party PPPP(Pakistan People Party).
He also has a sister Bakhtawar Bhutto. She was born in 1988, after her mother's death. He was educated at Harvard University, where he received his bachelor's degree in History.
In 2012, he received his master's degree from Oxford University. He worked as an intern at Deutsche Bank in London before moving to Karachi to work for Shaukat Aziz.
In 2008, he returned to Pakistan and began working for Zardari. During his time with Zardari, he helped organize relief efforts after floods devastated Pakistan in 2010 and 2011. He resigned from his post in 2012.
Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said that I am not afraid if I have to die like my mother. He said that on 14 December 2007, when Benazir was assassinated by terrorists near Rawalpindi.
But there are many rumours about him being killed due to depression or some other reasons but there is no official news about it yet so we can't say anything about it.
Some people think he is already dead and has been replaced with a look-alike who acts as his body double for security purposes.
His looks also differ in photos taken at different times, which leads us to believe that he may be dead already.
Bilawal's father Asif Ali Zardari often appears on television standing next to his son, who stands silently behind him looking like a robot programmed with pre-recorded lines!
The voice and face don't match at all! They seem completely different people! It's very obvious from his facial expressions and mannerisms that he is a very unhappy man.
In 2011 Murtaza Bhutto returned from self-imposed exile in Dubai where he had been living since 2008 after escaping an assassination attempt against him.
