Fawad Chaudhry is the last man who should be offering explanations. Yet the Minister of Science and Technology took it upon himself to explain why Prime Minister Imran Khan was a no show at Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (SAPM) Naeemul Haq’s funeral.
Naeemul Haque passed away on Saturday, February 15th after losing a long battle with cancer. He breathed his last in a hospital bed after battling cancer for the last two years.
In the last two years I saw him battle cancer with courage and optimism. Till the very end he was involved in Party affairs and attended cabinet meetings as long as he was able. His passing has left an irreplaceable void.
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) February 15, 2020
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The ‘janaza’ (Muslim funeral procession) of the 70-year-old senior Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader was held in Karachi. Naeemul Haq was laid to rest in Karachi’s Gizri Graveyard on Sunday.
Ex-senator, Maulana Tanveerul Haq Thanvi led the funeral prayer held at Ayesha Masjid in DHA, Karachi.
Prominent members of PTI members were present at the funeral of their fallen comrade. Punjab Governor Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar, Chief Minister Usman Buzdar, Deputy Speaker National Assembly Qasim Khan Suri, Governor Sindh Imran Ismail, Asad Umar were present.
Leaders associated with Muttahida Qoumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P), Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), and Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) were also present.
Yet one man that should have been there wasn’t. Prime Minister Imran Khan’s absence stuck out like a thorn.
Netizens Speak for Naeemul Haque
The PM’s absence at the Karachi funeral caused an uproar on social media considering how close the two were. Naeemul Haque was even one of the founding members of the PTI.
https://twitter.com/ayeshakhalid7/status/1229028647392235520
Prime Minister Imran Khan had no time to attend the funeral of his best friend & also one of the founding member of PTI. #RIPNaeemUlHaq
— Tweeterist 🇵🇰 (@Tweeterist_) February 16, 2020
Netizens took it upon themselves to speak on Naeemul Haq’s behalf.
Unfortunate that most PTI leaders didnt attend funeral of PTI founding member Naeem-ul-Haque in Karachi. Most have preferred to mourn on Twitter instead of making an effort to attend the namaz-e-janzah. Some were present in Karachi but didnt bother to attend the funeral.
— Murtaza Ali Shah (@MurtazaViews) February 16, 2020
مِری نمازِ جنازہ پڑھی ہے غیروں نے
مرے تھے جن کے لیے وہ رہے وضو کرتے
آتش— Raza Haroon رضا ہارون (@mrazaharoon) February 16, 2020
Naeemul Haque’s followers were hurt by the news.
https://twitter.com/ImpartialLad/status/1229073314074722304
Imran Khan did not attend the funeral ceremony of Naeem ul Haq who was his very close friend and was also founder of PTI .Imran Khan is so selfish person and has no sense to give respect to others.
— Muhammad Farid Choudhry (@MuhammadFaridC6) February 16, 2020
Simultaneously, many were disgusted by the commentary on a personal loss.
Sick to my stomach reading tweets commenting on who couldn't/didnt make it to Naeem-ul-Haq's funeral.
Dislike Imran Khan & his politics and comment on that as u wish but how can u even think of questioning his loss or commenting on how he chooses to mourn the loss of his friend?
— Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir (@ImaanZHazir) February 17, 2020
Grief and mourning are experienced differently by diff ppl. Some ppl say goodbye to their loved ones during a funeral. Some people visit their loved ones' graves frequently. Others cant.
Ppl r mourning their father, friend & colleague. Please let them do it in their own ways.
— Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir (@ImaanZHazir) February 17, 2020
Fawad Chaudhry to the Rescue?
Following the backlash on social media, Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry offered an explanation. He clarified why Imran and certain other senior PTI members were not at the Karachi funeral.
According to Fawad, Imran Khan held a separate ‘namaz-e–janaza‘ in Islamabad for members of Naeemul Haque’s network in the capital city. This does make sense given the SAPM was a long-time resident of the city.
Reason is PM decided to offer Namaz e Janaza at PM House Islamabad, since 2012 Naeem bhai lived in islamabad and majority of his friends and acquaintances are in Islamabad Family also cmng to Isld so tomorrow evening Dua and Janaza at Islamabad ll be offered. https://t.co/oI9teZtbEf
— Ch Fawad Hussain (@fawadchaudhry) February 16, 2020
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Fawad’s statement can be corroborated by Special Assistant to the PM for Information and Broadcasting, Dr. Firdous Ashiq Awan’s previous statement that there would be a special gathering for Naeemul Haque’s ‘namaz-e-janaza‘ at Prime Minister House.
وزیراعظم کے دیرینہ ساتھی اور تحریک انصاف کے بانی رہنما نعیم الحق کے ایصال ثواب کیلئے خصوصی دعا کل بروز پیر مورخہ17 فروری وزیراعظم ہاؤس میں ہو گی۔وزیراعظم عمران خان،وفاقی وزراء،مشیران اورپارٹی عہدیداران دعامیں شریک ہونگے۔اس موقع پرمرحوم نعیم الحق کے خاندان کے افرادبھی موجودہوں گے۔
— Dr. Firdous Ashiq Awan (@Dr_FirdousAwan) February 16, 2020
While this explanation does make sense that’s not the only explanation going around. The Daily Times reported that the PM did not get security clearance to attend the funeral.
In the end, we should be human enough to recognize that Imran Khan and Naeemul Haque’s personal relationship is none of our business anyway.
