Ittefaq Group
The Ittefaq Group was a Pakistani integrated steel producer with major operations in Punjab. It was sold to Al-Rehmat Group of Companies in 2004.History
It was founded by seven brothers in 1939 in British India as a small foundry. Among the founders, the major contributions were made by the brothers Mian Barkat Ali and Muhammad Sharif. The word Ittefaq in some context means Unity in English language.
The 7 founding brothers including Muhammad Sharif, father of Muhammad Nawaz Sharif, initially set up an iron-melting furnace in Landa Bazar, Lahore and quickly expanded this business in the early years of Pakistan.
By 1971, it had become the largest steel industry in all of Pakistan. In 1972, Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto nationalized the steel industry, including the Ittefaq family business empire — Ittefaq Group.
In 1974, Muhammad Sharif founded the Sharif Group of Companies.
In 1978, General Mohammad Zia ul-Haq returned the business after developing political links with the Sharifs. In 1983, Zia ul-Haq appointed Nawaz Sharif as finance minister in the Punjab provincial cabinet. Then after the Pakistani general election, 1988, Nawaz Sharif formed and headed the provincial government in Punjab. In November 1990, Nawaz Sharif became the Prime Minister of Pakistan for the first time.
In 2004, the Ittefaq Group was acquired by Al-Rehmat Group of Companies of Faisalabad for 2.159 billion. The sell-out was called by the Lahore High Court to pay up the loan which Ittefaq Group had taken between 1982 and 1988.
