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We Have An Unbiased Media!
Mar 17th 09An otherwise normally busy spotin Islamabad on March 16, 2009One of the deserted roads onMarch 16, 2009, in IslamabadActivists of PML-N at Aab Para -March 16, 2009And the much awaited happened!Chief Justice Iftikhar M. ChaudhJudiciary was restored with effect from March 22, 2009. Citizens rejoiced,the media was excited and the political workers were dancing. After 
 
midnight when the breaking news flashed on the media about the possibleresolution of the issue, and the announcement that the Prime Minister wasgoing to address the nation shortly, everybody was waiting endlesslysticking to their TV sets. The speech came at around 9:30 pm the followingmorning. at 10:30 we saw the footage of dancing people in different partsof country. Despite having very strong reservations about the person of Justice Chaudhry, I had been sincerely wishing for this seeminglyimpossible to happen. It was basically because of the fact that people¶s willand their power was being testified. This will and power had thrown an all-powerful dictator out of power. And now a popularly elected governmentwas resisting people¶s will. A contradiction in terms!When we saw people dancing in the streets of Pakistan, I wasoverwhelmed. I wanted to dance as well. I wanted to be with rejoicingpeople. We picked up the keys and left for Aab Para, where reportedlyhundreds of people had gathered and were dancing. We rushed to thatplace. On our way, we stopped at Melody, which is very close to Aab Paraand was also reported to be a place of people¶s rejoicing according toumpteen media channels. We took our pounding hearts to that place onlyto find it deserted. I was intrigued. I roamed around in the market, wherearound 90% of shops were still closed (it was around 11:30 a.m.). Tried totalk to the people, who looked absolutely disinterested. The khaakroon(sweeper), the paan waalah (beetle leaf selling person), the chhaabriwaalah (kiosk man), the waiter of a food kiosk and the sales man sitting ina food corner . . . all were but ignorant to the idea that they should beactually celebrating! When asked whether someone was dancing here,they expressed their utter ignorance. Just a man in the street told thatthere was a shop keeper who was member of Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf,celebrated by distributing sweets.
 
Disappointed, we left for the Aab Para market. It was exciting to see thesight of marchers over there. I rushed to them, who were standing in twogroups facing each other. One group was holding flags of PML-N andplacards with pictures of Mian Nawaz Shareef. The pictures wereinterestingly displaying MNS in an attire that resembles the image of Asif Ali Zardari ± clad in Ajrak and Sindhi topi (cap)! The other group washolding PTI¶s flags.The PML-N group got excited to see me, mistaking me as a journalist, andstarted shouting slogans of dekho dekho kaun aya, sher aya sher aya(Look who has come, the tiger, the tiger!), with tiger being PML-N¶selectoral symbol and general symbol of bravery.The total number of marchers belonging to both groups was not more thana hundred. when asked about the ³dancing´ all the channels were reportingabout, they told me that they had just arrived there half an hour ago anddon¶t know about any dancing episode. When asked why they were notdancing, they said they wanted to but they couldn¶t find dhol waalahs (thedrum beaters).Once again disappointed, I went on to ask some bystanders about it. I wastold that at 10:00 a.m. there was dancing by some lawyers who were there,and that too at the demand of some media persons who wanted interestingfootage to fill in air space!I left from Aab Para and try to comb Islamabad¶s other busy centers to findany ³rejoicing´, just to find deserted roads!Aahh . . . so much for ³efficient reporting´ by an efficient and unbiasedmedia!
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