Author: Sidharth Mishra
Publication: The Pioneer
Date: November 18, 2002
I marvel at the ability of this
city to make news and then go cold. While the Capital last week was newswise
pretty inactive, the one before that saw all the newspapers, along with
the television channels, busy grappling with the Ansal's Plaza shootout.
In the process the mediapersons
created a Franke-nstein called Dr Hari Krishna who left leading reporters
of the newspapers with huge circulation red-faced. All those who put their
money on Dr Dubious had to subsequently eat crow.
We in The Pioneer, while reporting
on the matter, maintained the basic principle of going to the depth of
the matter and restrain ourselves from indulging in sensationalism.
Even as the photographs of the scene
of encounter were being dissected on the front pages of different newspapers,
our reporters carried out the very basic exercise of visiting the spot
and examine the veracity of the claims made by Dr Hari Krishna.
Our investigations on Day One showed
that Dr Dubious could not have watched the encounter. The possibility of
his presence on the site of crime too was remote. Our stand was confirmed
by Dr Hari Krishna's mobile phone records. The other newspapers' reporters,
in their enthusiasm of Gover-nment bashing, gave credibility to the statements
of a person who is a professional fraud.
Before rushing to give credence
to a fraud like Dr Hari Krishna, a Pioneer reporter would always make an
enquiry about his antecedent. How do you depend on a 'cancer specialist'
who doesn't have the basic degree to practice under any medical system.
What's more surprising is that the bait was picked by a veteran editor
who petitioned the National Human Rights Commission.
While it has been largely concluded
that Dr Hari Krishna is a fraud, a larger question remains. Does the bashing
of the establishment without basis bring any credibility to the media houses?
Time for us to ponder though the suggestion may look to be 'intemperate'.
