In 1997 Pakistani general elections, Rafique participated in the elections on the PML-N's ticket and elected as the member of Provincial Assembly of the Punjab for the first time. He was appointed as Special Assistant to Prime Minister for Youth Affairs by then Prime Minister of Pakistan Nawaz Sharif, but his tenure was terminated by General Pervez Musharraf after the latter 1999 Pakistani coup d'état. He was among the PML-N leaders who confronted Musharraf in the absence of Nawaz Sharif.