ISLAMABAD – Interior Minister Rehman Malik told reporters at a press conference on Friday that slain minister Shahbaz Bhatti did not adhere to the prescribed security procedure, which provided the gunmen an opportunity to attack him. Malik stated categorically however that he never said Bhatti was responsible for his own assassination. He said though that had Bhatti not ordered his security staff to abandon him, the attackers could not have killed him.
He also said that Bhatti’s driver had been taken into protective custody because of the disparities between his statement and eyewitness accounts. He said the investigation team had not found any clues yet. “They have not reached any conclusion so far, however, there is a good development in the investigations,” he added. The interior minister said that he would look into the contents of the first information report (FIR) of the assassination because some people who were not at the crime scene were reportedly shown as witness in the FIR.
He said the law enforcement agencies would launch a crackdown soon against Afghan nationals illegally residing in the slums around the capital and Rawalpindi.
Malik said further that there were no reports to substantiate the presence of Xe, formerly known as BlackWater, in Pakistan. He also asked India to immediately share information with Pakistan if it felt a terrorist threat so that Pakistan could take the measures necessary to avert it.
Earlier, Canadian Multiculturalism, Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney told reporters at the press conference that Canada would welcome any action by Pakistani authorities against illegal immigration consultants.
The interior minister requested Kenney to exempt Pakistani US visa-holders from Canadian visa if they were traveling to the US via Canada. He also asked the Canadian minister to expedite the Canadian visa process for Pakistanis.
