THE tragic death of a 70-year-old man from cardiac arrest who was on hunger strike outside the Karachi Press Club on Sunday against the tyranny he and his family had been subjected to at the hands of a landlord has shocked everyone. His family had been forced to vacate the area by the landlord who had a fake FIR registered against him. No one listened to him; the only course he was left with was to stage a hunger strike, hoping that he would get some relief, something in which he miserably failed. However it was his death that alerted everyone. Several provincial ministers and political leaders did not waste time and rushed to the scene to condole with the bereaved family. They were quick to talk to the media, expressing their sympathy for the deceased man. But all this appears to be cosmetic, to earn publicity. One wonders what all of them were doing while the old man had been sitting in front of the KPC pleading for justice for so many days. This incident points to a wide chasm existing between the masses and leadership, which is a sad reflection of the state of democracy in the country.