KARACHI, May 17: In an environment fraught with all things negative, it is no surprise there is so much bad news in our media.

Yet despite the prevalence of negativity, one is given hope by the fact that some news stories do have happy endings. The arrival of Dr S.M. Khaleel Chishty, an eminent virologist, in his hometown of Karachi on Wednesday evening was one such happy ending.

Dr Chishty’s story had been doing the rounds for the past several months on TV channels and in the papers. On a trip to his ancestral hometown of Ajmer in Rajasthan, India, in 1992, the doctor was caught in a melee and ended up being implicated in a murder case. His trial dragged on for the next 20 years, throughout which Dr Chishty maintained he was innocent and being victimised because of his nationality.

The octogenarian was finally sentenced to a life term in 2011 and it took President Asif Zardari’s intervention — through his meeting with the Indian prime minister last month in Delhi — for the Indian government to consider Dr Chishty’s case on compassionate grounds. The Indian Supreme Court allowed the doctor to temporarily visit Pakistan just last week.

Hence, after a torturous wait of two decades, Dr Chishty’s arrival in Karachi — via Islamabad, where he had touched down on Tuesday night — must have been like arriving in a different country. The metropolis has changed, as has Pakistan, while on a human level Dr Chishty returned to find grandchildren he had left as toddlers grown up into young adults, relatives and neighbours who had 20 years of news to share with him, as well as streets and neighbourhoods that had changed beyond recognition. Yet despite the changes, it was clear from the look on his tired yet beaming face that he was glad to be home.

As one stood in the domestic arrivals lounge at Jinnah International Airport moments before Dr Chishty exited, the air was thick with anticipation. Even before he arrived, the media started milling around his family members, who told this writer that TV crews had been at their residence since Tuesday, when the doctor flew from Delhi to Islamabad. This was expected, considering the nature of the story. The moment Dr Chishty was brought out from the arrivals lounge, a mini-stampede broke out. Politicians, media persons and security men all jostled with one another to achieve their respective purposes — to get photographed with Dr Chishty in an election year, to get footage for the ‘breaking news’ and to try and keep order.

In the heat of the moment it was impossible for family members to even get close to Dr Chishty. The veritable wall of cameras, tripods and microphones stood in between, while workers from different political parties and curious onlookers added to the growing crowd. After great difficulty Dr Chishty was shifted to a waiting vehicle, which soon sped off for his North Nazimabad residence.

The usually quiet lane where his bungalow is located was abuzz with activity; political workers had taken over, planting party flags and banners to ‘welcome’ Dr Chishty, while the lane was chock-a-block with DSNG vans, their satellite dishes pointing heavenwards, beaming the events live. As Dr Khaleel Chishty emerged from the vehicle, he was again swarmed by the media.

Looking visibly exhausted, he, with his family members, gave a brief press conference, after which he pleaded to be allowed to go inside. After further jostling, he was finally carried up a flight of stairs into his living room.

Without a doubt, the media has played a key role in highlighting Dr Chishty’s case and deserves due credit. Yet one felt that in such situations, the media must balance their need to get the facts with sensitivity for the people involved. For instance, camera crews and reporters need to organise themselves in a more disciplined manner so as not to create a scene wherever a story is breaking. A number of senior lensmen and reporters this writer talked to were of the opinion that nearly every major press conference or news event experiences rowdiness by some members of the media. In a related matter, one still remembers the incident in March this year when cricketer Shahid Afridi reacted violently to an overzealous fan who had reportedly hurt his daughter.

There is a need for greater empathy and seriousness. For instance, one reporter asked Dr Chishty what he wanted to have for breakfast, while another asked his elder brother if he was happy about the reunion. Journalists should be probing, but not at the cost of common sense.

As Dr Chishty readjusts to life as a free man, the media will move on to the next big story. And while it does, it would be helpful to keep in mind that while getting the story is important, respecting people’s privacy, putting questions in a sensitive manner and maintaining some sort of discipline while covering events is of equal importance.—QAM