The Ittefaq Group (English ''The Unity Group'') was a Pakistani integrated

steel Steel is an alloy made up of iron with added carbon to improve its strength and fracture resistance compared to other forms of iron. Many other elements may be present or added. Stainless steels that are corrosion- and oxidation-resistan ...

producer with minor operations in

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi Language, Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also Romanization, romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the I ...

. It was sold to Al-Rehmat Group of Companies in 2004.

History

It was founded by seven brothers in 1972 as a small foundry. Among the founders, the major contributions were made by the brothers Mian Barkat Ali and

Muhammad Sharif Mian Muhammad Sharif ( Punjabi, ur, ;18 November 1919 – 19 October 2004) was a Pakistani businessman who is known as the co-founder of Ittefaq Group and founder of Sharif Group. Two of his three sons, Nawaz and Shehbaz became Prime Mini ...

. The word ''Ittefaq'' in some context means ''Unity'' in English language (implying unity among 7 founding brothers). The father of Muhammad Nawaz Sharif (former Prime Minister), initially set up an iron-melting furnace in Landa Bazar,

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second List of cities in Pakistan by population, most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th List of largest cities, most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is th ...

and quickly expanded this business in the early years of Pakistan. By 1971, it was starting to make presence in steel industry in Pakistan. In 1972, Prime Minister

Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Zulfikar (or Zulfiqar) Ali Bhutto ( ur, , sd, ذوالفقار علي ڀٽو; 5 January 1928 – 4 April 1979), also known as Quaid-e-Awam ("the People's Leader"), was a Pakistani barrister, politician and statesman who served as the fourt ...

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 General elections were held in Pakistan on 16 November 1988 to elect the members of the National Assembly and Senate. The elections saw the resurgence of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) under the leadership of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto's daughter, Ben ...

, 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 Faisalabad (; Punjabi/ ur, , ; ), formerly known as Lyallpur (Punjabi, Urdu: لائل پور), named after the founder of the city, but was renamed in 1977 in honour of late King Faisal of Saudi Arabia. It is the 3rd largest city of Pakis ...

for 2.159 billion. The sell-out was called by the

Lahore High Court The Lahore High Court () is based in Lahore, Pakistan. It was established as a high court on 21 March 1882. The Lahore High Court has jurisdiction over Punjab (Pakistan). The High Court's principal seat is in Lahore, but there are benches in th ...

to pay up the loan which Ittefaq Group had taken between 1982 and 1988. Upon the plea of family of Mian Mehraj Din (one of the seven brothers who set up Ittefaq Group and founder of Haseeb Waqas Group of Companies ) that the evaluation of assets is wrong Ittefaq Foundry was finally sold out to Al-Rehmat Group for 6 billion.

References

Manufacturing companies based in Lahore Steel companies of Pakistan Sharif family Manufacturing companies established in 1970 Defunct manufacturing companies of Pakistan Manufacturing companies disestablished in 2004 Mergers and acquisitions of Pakistani companies 2004 mergers and acquisitions Pakistani companies disestablished in 2004 {{Pakistan-company-stub