Hyderabad: Senior journalist Jabbar Siddique, who served in Siasat Urdu Daily for over three decades, passed away on Sunday night. He was 78 and was survived by his wife, a son and two daughters.
Jabbar Siddique had retired from Siasat in 2004.
Jabbar Siddqiue is fondly remembered as ‘Jabbar Sahab’ in journalistic circles. As a senior-most crime reporter, Jabbar maintained excellent contacts in the police department and would share information and guide younger crime-beat reporters across media houses.
Former associate editor and bureau chief of The Hindu Businessline, M Somasekhar remembers Jabbar Siddique fondly.
“His contacts were so deep that he knew the top brass in the Police department as well as the beat constable in many Police stations of the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad. The common refrain among journalists was that some Police officers too would enquire from Jabbar about important developments within the department,” he wrote.
“I distinctly remember during communal clashes, Jabbar Siddique would get information from virtually every major police station. He did not carry airs about himself and willingly shared information, specially with younger Journalists, and specially english news journalists,” Somasekhar recalled.
Several other journalists, who worked alongside Jabbar Sahab’s, too recalled their association and his willingness to share crime-related information.