Reporter’s diary: Media to expose fraud, scribe to take the heat

This reporter recently bore the brunt of such an outburst when he called the office of the Controller of Examinations at the University after he received complaints from students that they could not access their results online.

The university announced the results on its website for UG students this week, that, too, in the night. A few students reported that they had difficulty to access the result using their roll numbers.

When this correspondent called an official on his mobile phone to inquire about the same, the official screamed at the reporter and even used abusive language to convey that he had no obligation to respond to journalists.

When this reporter tried to explain that he was just doing his job, the official screamed further and disconnected the call. Later, when the scribe called the PRO’s office to ask about the official’s behaviour, he came to know that the person he had spoken to was on leave.

Later, staff at the PRO’s office apologised for the official and said, “With so many scandals and investigations concerning question paper leaks and irregularities in evaluations out in the open, the staff have become non-cooperative with the media as they blame you for their troubles.”

Despite the abuse received, the reporter was happy that the officials have now recognised the media’s role in exposing fraud.