Which VPN, people ask Shahbaz Sharif as he greets Trump on Pak-banned X

Minutes after Donald Trump took oath in Washington DC on Monday, Pakistan PM Shahbaz Sharif took to X to congratulate him. However, Sharif's message on X, meant to "strengthen the enduring Pakistan-US partnership", soon turned into a spectacle as people asked which VPN (Virtual Private Network) he was using. X has been banned by the Pakistani government and ordinary Pakistanis are unable to access it. So, Sharif was slammed as a hypocrite for using X.

"Which VPN are you using?" asked Johannesburg-based Ahmad Hassan Bobak to show Sharif's hypocrisy.

"My warmest congratulations to Donald Trump on his assumption of office as the forty-seventh President of the United States of America. I look forward to working with him to strengthen the enduring Pakistan-US partnership. Over the years, our two great countries have worked together closely to pursue peace and prosperity in the region and beyond for our peoples & we shall continue to do so in the future. My best wishes to President Trump for a successful second term in office," Sharif wrote on X.

Pakistan's Sharif-led PML(N)-PPP government, in February 2024, banned X, citing its commitment to "upholding national security, maintaining public order, and preserving the integrity of the nation".

"Donald Trump, please note that the Prime Minister of Pakistan is congratulating you on X via using VPN himself because he has banned the use of your friend's Elon Musk's platform in Pakistan," commented Winnipeg-based Nausheen Peerwani, whose bio says she's "[Imran] Khan's ardent supporter".

While some people pointed out the "contradiction" of posting on X and Sharif's "hypocrisy", an Indian X user took a dig at the Pakistani PM.

"X is banned in Pakistan. So, how will your countrymen get to know what you are talking about?," pointed out Krishna Kant Sharma.

Sharma added, "In democracy, everyone is supposed to be equal. So why don't you allow the rest of Pakistan access X".

STOP BEING A HYPOCRITE, PAKISTANIS TELL SHAHBAZ SHARIF

A Pakistani user slamming Shahbaz Sharif for the message on X even questioned his legitimacy to do so, saying, "You all should stop being hypocritical".

"... You didn't become the Prime Minister through Parliament but through the power of the deep state. You are not the people’s elected Prime Minister. In this context, congratulations to Trump from the people of Pakistan may be appropriate, but not from people like you, who are representatives of thieves and the deep state," posted X handle Patriot Pakist20.

The critics of Sharif's PML(N)-PPP government, particularly from jailed-former PM Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, have alleged that X was meant to curb dissent. After Imran Khan was ousted in April 2022, and later jailed in May 2023, X became a space for the PTI to rally supporters, share updates, and voice grievances against the government.

"Is it not a big violation of government policy by the government itself? The government of Pakistan imposed a ban on X many months ago, but why the Prime Minister and his senior ministers use X through VPN continuously? What kind of message is it to the people of Pakistan?," asked Pakistani journalist Hamid Mir in July 2024.

That said, this is not the first instance Pakistan PM Shahbaz Sharif has posted on the banned platform X. In fact, Sharif posts on X regularly, mostly on matters pertaining to international outreach. Since the congratulatory message to Donald Trump, Sharif has posted a condolence message after the Turkiye ski resort fire and another landslide and flash flood in Indonesia's Java.