What a catastrophic downfall!
Sindh High Court story: apology Saturday, 28 Aug, 2010
KARACHI, Aug 27: A news item was printed on the front page of daily Dawn dated 23 June, 2010 under the caption Rs.1.8 million for Sindh C.J’s treatment in US, which was authored by reporter Bhagwandas. In the said news item it was reported that Government had relaxed the ban on overseas treatment at public expense treating it as an exceptional case and parts of the medical history of the Hon’ble Chief Justice of Sindh High Court were published. It was further insinuated that perhaps he was not entitled to the treatment abroad. However, it has now been verified that as the treatment for the Hon’ble Chief Justice was not available in Pakistan, he had no option but to have the same abroad. In the past also Hon’ble Judges of superior Courts of this country have gone abroad for such treatment where it was not available in Pakistan, which is permissible to them under the Rules. Consequently, Dawn renders an unconditional and unqualified apology to the Hon’ble Chief Justice and Judges of Sindh High Court for having published and printed the above news item without verifying the correct position. Dawn undertakes to be more careful in future. “
What a stupour ! DAWN itself is admitting a very careless and irresponsible attitude which has been unlike its glorious traditions and world class reporting.
The news item relates to not less important a personality than an Honourable Chief Justice of Sindh High Court. The long and short of the story is that the Honourable Chief Justice was in need of treatment which was not available in Pakistan, just in a customary and routine way, which was his privilege.
It is simply not understandable what sterling point was noticed about the event by the newspaper to make a mountain out of a mole hill and create a sensational story which ultimately brought disgrace to DAWN the like of which had never happened in the history of DAWN.
But intelligent quarters are not prepared to dismiss it merely as a casusal mistake. They hold that it was a sequel to the recent policy of DAWN to desist from objective and professional approach and adopt a domineering & pro commercial agenda of “vested interests”.
Those who can read in between the lines know that there were certain cases pending in the Sindh High Court involving very personal interests of the Dawn’s owners for which they appeared to have acted over smartly to release a story which might establish their hegemony, which however fired back resulting in reducing the highly dignified newspaper to gutter press level.
The shift in the traditional policy of the DAWN is said to be a calculated move by DAWN Executives in consonance with which an Editor like Mr. Nasir Abbas was inducted in the chain of great Editors like – Altaf Hussain and Ahmad Ali Khan.
Mr. Abbas Nasir is said to have very faithfully fulfilled the mandate given to him and in that process destroyed the high professional standard and norms for which DAWN had been known. Now that the agenda entrusted to him has almost been completed, he is reportedly on the verge of departure. But he appeared to be determined to lick the agenda till the last moment.
The question is whether Mr. Abbas Nasir has built his image as a professional Editor of DAWN or spoilt it altogether by following the non professional agenda and trampling the professional norms.
It would be an interesting propitiation to probe whether the sudden convulsion of tendering “apology” after 78 days of publishing of the said News item, was an honest change of heart, or what took the DAWN 78 days to come to the realization of truth, which was always evident.
On 23-06-2010 an obituary was written “here lies the body of the DAWN which fought valiantly for professional prestige throughout, but fell ultimately to Mr. Abbas Nasir”.
Shamsul Islam Naz
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