Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari: The rise of a 'son' in Pakistan's power politics

The passing over of leadership did not come to young Bilawal as a fairytale but rather as a horrendous reality after his mother Benazir Bhutto was killed in a bomb and gun attack at a political rally in Rawalpindi in 2007.

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New Delhi: Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Wednesday (April 27) sworn in as the foreign minister of Pakistan under the government led by new Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. Bilawal Bhutto is not only known for leading one of the most prominent political parties in Pakistan but also for being the son of Pak's first and only female PM to date, Benazir Bhutto.

Being the son of three times Pak PM Benazir Bhutto who herself was the daughter of former prime minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, Bilawal was in fact expected to take over the leadership of the political dynasty. 

However, the passing over of leadership did not come to young Bilawal as a fairytale but rather a horrendous reality after his mother was killed in a bomb and gun attack at a political rally in Rawalpindi in 2007.

Son of former Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari, 19-year-old Bilawal took over her mother's legacy just three days after her assassination in December 2007 and became the chairman of the Pakistan People's Party.

Despite sudden elevation in his political career, Bilawal kept a low profile and pursued his higher education at Oxford University in London and played an active role as PPP chairman after his return to Pakistan in 2010.

After his eletion to the National Assembly in 2018, it is for the first time that Bilawal has been given a key post in the government and assigned the key portfolio of the foreign minister of the country.

Interestingly, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari's political career makes an uncanny resemblance with his maternal grandfather Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto as he also started his career as Pak foreign minister in the 1960s.

Challenges Bilawal faces as Pak's New FM

Among the main challenges, Bilawal needs to fix strained ties with the US in the wake of conspiracy allegations by former premier Imran Khan and find a way to restart the stalled peace process with neighbouring India.