Claim: A picture depicts Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s mother and grandmother, who played the drum in the streets of Amritsar in colonial India.
Fact: The claim is incorrect. The photograph, in fact, shows two people from the khawajasira community and was taken some time between 1890 and 1894.
On 8 May 2026, Facebook user ‘Ali Da Malang’ posted a picture of two women in a group called ‘Irshad bhatti Journalist’ with the claim that it shows the mother and grandmother of PM Shehbaz Sharif.
The picture includes text that states:
“چور شریف کی ماں اور نانی کی ایک یادگار تصویر جو امرتسر میں گلی گلی ڈھولکی بجایا کرتیں تھیں
[A memorable picture of Thief Sharif’s mother and grandmother, who used to play the dholki [drum] in the streets of Amritsar]”
The post is accompanied by the following caption:
“اس پوسٹ کو لازمی شیئر کریں تاکہ لوگوں کو سمجھ آ جائے نون لیگ کی فیملی کا کاروبار
[This post must be shared so that people understand the business of the PML-N family.]”
Fact or Fiction?
Soch Fact Check reverse-searched the image and found that it is unrelated to PM Sharif.
The search led us to a 31 May 2019 article (archive) on the BBC, titled, “How Britain tried to ‘erase’ India’s third gender”. The image is credited to Bridgeman Images, which describes it as showing “Hinjra (Dancers and Singers)” from the 1890s.
The description on the Bridgeman Images website states, “From Report on the Census of 1891. Volume II. The Castes of Marwar Illustrated. Jodhpore: Marwar Darbar: 1894.” The artist section says the picture was taken by an English photographer between 1890 and 1894.
The image has also appeared as a cover photo for author and historian Dr Jessica Hinchy’s book, “Governing Gender and Sexuality in Colonial India; The Hijra, c.1850–1900”.
This is not the first time the claim has surfaced online; we debunked it in January 2023 as well when it was linked to PM Sharif’s elder brother and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Supremo Nawaz Sharif.
Soch Fact Check, therefore, concludes that claim is false and has no relation whatsoever to the Sharif family.
Virality
Soch Fact Check found the claim posted at least 10 times on Facebook, including in public groups, as well as on X (formerly Twitter), where it has gained over 16,500 views so far.
We have debunked multiple claims involving the word “thief” associated with the Sharif family and PML-N leaders in the past.
Conclusion: The claim is incorrect. The photograph, in fact, shows two people from the khawajasira community and was taken between 1890 and 1894.
Background image in cover photo: ShehbazSharif
To appeal against our fact-check, please send an email to appeals@sochfactcheck.com