ISLAMABAD: Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly, Syed Khurshid Shah on Monday claimed that the blast in Shikarpur was a failure of the intelligence agencies who he said had the prime responsibility to counter terrorist acts.

Initiating the debate to discuss the Shikarpur attack, the opposition leader also questioned the absence of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif who was present in Karachi on Friday to review the law and order situation in the province.

Read also At least 60 killed in blast at Shikarpur imambargah

“It is unfortunate that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was present in Karachi but avoided visiting Shikarpur to meet the families of the victims who lost their loved ones in the blast,” Shah said.

He stated that it was the responsibility of the intelligence agencies to share information with police and law enforcement agencies to counter terrorist activities.

“During the ongoing circumstances, can we say that Pakistan is a nuclear state,” the opposition leader questioned.

He also said that almost all opposition parties have supported the PL-N government to strengthen democracy in the country, but the PM was not present in today’s session to explain the government's position regarding the terrorist attack.

He suggested the PM should visit Shikarpur as soon as possible to meet the victim’s families who lost their relatives.

Shah also said that the government cannot counter terrorism without improving the intelligence network.

Meanwhile, PML-F MNA Ghous Bux Khan Mahar stated that the provincial and the federal governments had failed to counter the Shikarpur attack, which he said was a question mark on the intelligence agencies performance.

MQM MNA Saman Jafri said that the government had failed to implement the death penalty of Ata-ur-Rehman, the chief of Jandullah – the banned outfit which claimed responsibility for the blast.

The MQM lawmaker also said that the government has refused to acknowledge the presence of ISIS in Pakistan which she claimed distributes pamphlets in different areas of Karachi to kill people.

“The government should also take action against the apologists of militants who are present in our society,” Jafri added.

QWP MNA Aftab Ahmed Khan Sherpao, PPP lawmaker Aftab Shaban Mirani and Molana Amir Zaman also demanded of the government to implement the recommendations of the National Action Plan to counter terrorism.

At least 60 people were killed and dozens of others injured on Friday after a blast inside an imambargah in Shikarpur.

The militant organisation Jundullah, a splinter group of Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), claimed responsibility for the terrorist attack.

It was the second major attack on an imambargah in the country since the beginning of 2015; the first being an attack on Rawalpindi’s Imambargah Aun Mohammad Rizvi in the garrison city’s Chatian Hatian area.