In a recent social media gaffe, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif became the subject of widespread ridicule after posting a congratulatory message on X (formerly Twitter) for U.S. President-elect Donald Trump. His post drew attention due to the platform’s recent ban in Pakistan and a subsequent community note on X that highlighted the use of a VPN to access it, which is technically unlawful under Pakistani law.

On November 6, Sharif posted, “Congratulations to President-elect Donald Trump on his historic victory for a second term! I look forward to working closely with the incoming Administration to further strengthen and broaden the Pakistan-U.S. partnership.” However, a community note flagged that Sharif’s access to the platform was achieved via a VPN, as X remains inaccessible in Pakistan following a government ban. This restriction, instituted earlier in the year for national security reasons, was justified by Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar, who claimed that militants from the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) had used the platform to incite anti-national activities.

Pakistani social media users were quick to mock the Prime Minister’s post, pointing out the irony of using a VPN to congratulate the U.S. President-elect while simultaneously enforcing a platform ban in his own country. “Most corrupt and dictator puppet in the history of Pakistan is congratulating Trump,” one user commented, while another remarked, “Pakistani PM taken to cleaners by his audience.” One user, tagging Elon Musk, posted, “Mr. Trump, this joker using VPN to congratulate you…By the way, Elon Musk’s platform has been banned in Pakistan!”

The incident highlighted the perceived hypocrisy of Sharif’s government, which has imposed restrictions on social media access, only for the Prime Minister to bypass them for diplomatic gestures. The backlash may prompt further debate within Pakistan about government-enforced platform bans and officials’ own adherence to these policies.