A majority of federal ministers had advised Prime Minister Imran Khan to go to Quetta and share the grief of the Hazara community, who have been on strike for the past one week and are refusing to bury the bodies of their loved ones until The Prime Minister does not come and meet him.
Talks were held with four federal ministers on Friday and all agreed that the prime minister should visit Quetta and show solidarity with the protesting Hazara community so that the victims could be buried. On condition of anonymity, the ministers said that the decision not to visit Quetta before the funeral was the Prime Minister's own decision.
The ministers said the issue was also raised at a meeting of the federal cabinet and a majority of ministers suggested to Prime Minister Imran Khan that he move to Quetta.
Two of the four ministers said that initially Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid advised the Prime Minister to wait a few days. However, one of the ministers told this correspondent that the prime minister was later advised by the interior ministry to visit the protesting Hazara community.
Another minister said that in some cases, once the prime minister has established his opinion, he does not change his mind. "Unfortunately in this case, they have decided not to go to Quetta before the burial of the victims," a minister said.
Surprisingly, addressing a function on Friday, the Prime Minister confirmed what the ministers had told The News. Giving a highly controversial statement, the Prime Minister appealed to the Hazara community to bury the victims of the Machh attack on the one hand and the protesters not to blackmail the Prime Minister on the other.
Addressing the inauguration ceremony of the Special Technology Zones Authority in Islamabad, Prime Minister Imran Khan assured the protesters that they would go to Quetta on the same day immediately after the burial of the victims and meet the affected families. Prime Minister Imran Khan said in his address: "We have complied with all their demands.
But one of their demands is that the funeral of the slain be held when the Prime Minister visits. I have sent them a message that when all your demands have been met ... You cannot blackmail the Prime Minister of any country like this.
Hours after Prime Minister Imran Khan's controversial statement, Federal Minister Ali Haider Zaidi tweeted that the government had offered the agreement to the Hazara community.
He copied it and said, "When everyone has agreed, who is doing politics on the bodies of the martyrs?" Interestingly, one of the four federal ministers who spoke to The News confirmed that Ali Zaidi had supported Prime Minister Imran Khan's decision to go to Quetta and meet the Hazara community at a cabinet meeting.
