Former Punjab chief minister Hamza Shahbaz Sharif has been shown offering prayers at the residence of martyred Major Wajahat Wahid in Lahore. The act came after he had expressed condolences to the major's mother, brother, wife and other relatives. The prayer recited in such situations is known as fateha, a standard gesture of respect for the dead in Pakistan. Such condolence calls by senior politicians are routine when a soldier is killed in the line of duty. The report from Lahore carries little beyond the scene itself, confirming only who was present and what took place. For the Wahid family, the visit meant public recognition of the loss from one of Punjab's most prominent political figures.