Interior Minister Hamid Nawaz Khan clarified that the government still stood by the “factual position” that Bhutto died of a skull fracture and not from a bullet wound. His remarks came hours after he was quoted by the media as urging people to “forgive and ignore” comments made by his ministry’s spokesman, Javed Iqbal Cheema, that Bhutto had struck her head on a metal lever on the sun-roof of her armoured Toyota Land Cruiser, resulting in a fatal skull fracture.

But Khan today said his apology was only for some “crude words” that the spokesman had used and it had “no effect on the factual position” taken by the government.

Yesterday, Khan had apologised for Cheema’s comments during a briefing for Pakistani newspaper editors by caretaker Prime Minister Mohammedmian Soomro, which was also attended by the Foreign Minister, Information Minister and senior officials. He had said Cheema’s comments may have been a mistake as “we are faujis (soldiers) and we are not so articulate to present our views as you journalists”. Both the Interior Minister and Cheema are retired army officers. “I am sorry if that happened and please forgive us and ignore the comment,” he had said.

Meanwhile, five days after her death, Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) activists continue to gather at Liaquat Bagh, their Ground Zero, off the busy Murree Road, which connects the half-hour drive between Islamabad and Rawalpindi. Nayeem, a 28-year-old teacher, is an eyewitness and survivor. He suffered a leg injury in the blast. Carrying painkillers in his pocket, he limps to the spot where “Bibi” was killed. “When her car, which was making a U-turn, was stopped by people, I got her portrait autographed by her. A friend of mine was throwing flower petals at her, but she asked him to stop,” he recalls.

In the melee, he says he was pushed back. “And then I heard three gunshots. Within seconds, there was a huge blast and I flew and hit the wall behind,” he says, pointing to a five-feet wall on the other side of the road. Nayeem doesn’t remember anything after that.

His friend Mohamad Babar, 34, says: “I saw the man whose photos were later released near the wall. But I wasn’t near him when the blast took place.”

The exact spot where Bhutto died is in the middle of a road. But that hasn’t stopped PPP leaders from demanding that a memorial be built there. “We have already asked the Punjab government to make a monument here. Anyway, we are sure to build a monument because we will soon have our own government in place, whether the elections happen on January 8 or later,” says PPP’s local candidate Zumard Khan, who received Bhutto on the stage that day.

Inside the Liaquat Bagh, a six-acre dusty park, PPP activists spend a balmy afternoon sitting around a shamiana erected on the stage from where Bhutto addressed her last speech. “It was a very passionate speech, and she was quite at ease as the park was pretty full,” says Raza Ghufta Ahmed, secretary of the PPP’s youth wing in Rawalpindi, standing in front of Bhutto’s portrait with bouquets and diyas.

As PPP’s senate leader Babar Awan drops by at about 2 pm, a brief prayer service is held. Post-mourning, hot plates of vegetable biryani are served. The conversation either centres around the upcoming polls or ensuring justice to Bhutto’s killers. They take heart from the fact that the Punjab Government has released posters announcing a Rs 1-crore cash reward for anyone providing information to catch the terrorists. “At least the government is showing some interest, we will do the rest when we come to power,” says Awan.

Opposite the Bagh, is the PPP’s local office. Inside, two youths are counting the day’s donations. In the last five days, they say they have received over Rs 5 lakh.