It was a usual hot and humid day of July in 2007. For the media, Capital city was heading towards the most sensational event of its history.
Security forces were entrenched in government buildings right opposite Lal Masjid. They were asking the clerics to surrender and vacate a government building Jamia Hafsa-girls seminary had taken over.
The eyeball-to-eyeball confrontation between law enforcement agencies and students of the famous mosque had been going on for several days. Newly emerged TV channels were telecasting minute by minute reports of the events unfolding through their respective reporters-budding journalists.
On the eventful day of July 3rd, there were reports of exchange of fire between the two sides. Such reports attracted more news coverage for which every TV channel wanted to leave behind other media outlets for “Breaking News”.
To monitor the evolving situation, the print journalists were standing opposite Lal Masjid on the main road that connects Aabpara chowk to Meloday. Our colleagues from electronic media in their pursuit for “Breaking News” were trying to be as close to the site of confrontation as they could, so that they could give first-hand account of the situation and update their newsrooms with “beepers”.
Cameramen and reporters were in competition with each other to get the best shots and reports. In competition for TV ratings, management encourages reporters to go extra-mile and take a lead from others.
Around 4pm, a sudden heavy gunfire erupted when students of Lal Masjid and Security forces camped in government buildings opposite the Mosque opened fire on each other. Some of our journalist colleagues were right in the middle of the road separating the two sides. Few managed to escape and moved to a safer distance.
The cameramen and reporters trapped in the crossfire had to tuck themselves under the trees and footpath. When the firing stopped, nine people were dead and around 150 sustained injuries in the deadly clash.
Among the casualties were two cameramen-one died and the other paralyzed for life. Luckily, the reporters remained unhurt.
It was a time when “safety of a journalist” covering such violent events, was almost an unheard term in the Pakistani media industry. No one was provided mandatory protective gear before covering such events.
Among the reporters trapped in the crossfire was Tariq Mehmood, working for ARY TV channel as its defence and diplomatic correspondent. This was the start of the Lal Masjid tragedy in which dozens of lives were lost before forces cleared the area on July 10.
The event was an opportunity for media houses sensational reporting. For management, staffers tapped in crossfire was not such a sensitive matter. Had this happened in the civilized world, their organizations would have arranged post-trauma therapy sessions for such staffers.
Tariq along with other colleagues continued to cover the whole event for days to come. The management of leading TV channels booked rooms in a luxury Islamabad hotel- hardly 200 yards away from what had turned into a battleground in the heart of Islamabad.
Soon after Lal Masjid operation, Swat valley became a bastion of militants. Tariq was frequently reporting on ground when militancy was at peak in the area. He was first among the few who interviewed many commanders of militants including Molvi Fazalullah.
He later covered months-long security forces’ successful operations in Swat, North and South Waziristan, and other militancy-hit areas .On one hand, such daunting assignments gave him “scopes” in journalism, at the same time it was risking the life of father of three children, and family’s sole bread-earner.
When the government of Hosni Mubarak, Egypt’s autocratic former president was toppled during the Arab spring protests in 2011, Tariq Mehmood was among the foreign journalists and probably the only one from Pakistan who reported from there when the situation was worst.
During this trip he was caught by the armed groups thrice, but was lucky to be released every time using his personal links.
Such daring coverages gave Tariq scopes and self-satisfaction as a journalist; they could not attract even a letter of appreciation from the bosses of organisations for whom he risked his life.
Tariq Mehmood, started his journalistic career from leading Urdu Language Newspaper Jang and later switched over to electric media. He worked for half a dozen News Channels, including ARY, SAMA TV, News One, Waqat TV, 92 News, HUM News etc.
In June 2015, he was assigned to cover elections of the newly established legislative assembly of Gilgit-Baltistan. His selection was made owing to his extensive knowledge and strong contacts in remote parts of the country.
Tariq had earlier spent many weeks there covering an avalanche that blocked the Indus River resulting in what is now called Attaabad Lake.
On his way back after extensive coverage of campaign and polls in GB, the office vehicle developed some fault in it’s breaks. While getting it fixed from a workshop in Mansehra late evening, Tariq fell pit of the workshop and suffered compound fractures in his foot. The accident left him in bed for months.
Even multiple surgeries couldn’t give him back his normal walk. 92 News, the channel he worked for then, paid him salary till the day he suffered injuries. The rest of the months he spent during the treatment were treated “unpaid” leave.
None of these events could deter journalist in Tariq Mehmood from taking up challenges till he caught Covid-19 in November Last year. He was shifted to Holy Family hospital on December 3rd. Three days later, he was shifted on a ventilator. He breathed his last battling the deadly virus on December17, 2020.
Narration of select events from Tariq’s journalistic life is not meant to highlight his heroic credentials, but to provide a glimpse of life of a working journalist who dedicates life to a thankless profession.
Mere earning a name with such hard-work was not enough to manage expenses from journalism. He used to teach at National University of Modern Language on contract basis, and give lectures in few other universities to make both ends meet.
Few months before he left for the heavens, Tariq had been complaining of a mild fever in the night. He thought it was due to his hectic work schedule that started at 8 am with lectures in the universities followed by reporting in the field. He normally ends his day by mid-night.
Infect, the stressful nature of reporting jobs, harsh routine and financial woes had taken a toll on Tariq’s health. His lungs were already infected, which he ignored because of his hectic routine and continuous struggle to support family.
Condolences poured in on his sad demise. TV channels reported his death in their news bulletins, social media was bombarded with memoirs with him. Journalist bodies, government officials, politicians, ministers and diplomatic missions extended condolences through their press releases and official twitter accounts. Foreign Office postponed the weekly press briefing in his respect.
The government announced awards and looking after families of Tariq Mehmood, Arshad Chaudhry Geo TV’s senior correspondent and other journalists who fell victim to COVID-19.
Leave aide any financial help, managements of media organizations Tariq gave two decades of his life, the so- called journalist bodies that thrive in the name of journalists and journalism, government institutions like ISPR, Foreign Office, and the Ministries that he covered for years, did not take pain to contact his children-all still students.
