Policies

The duties and responsibilities of all authors are, including but not limited to, thus:

Authorship:

1. Authorship of the submitted manuscript should be based on the following criteria:

   1. Substantial intellectual contribution in either the ideation or conception of the submission.

   2. Contribution to drafting of the submission and making subsequent revisions.

   3. Ability to grant final approval of the version that must be published.

2. The Journal encourages collaboration and thus, co-authorship. However, the manuscript submitted should accurately and clearly attribute authorship only to those who meet the criteria mentioned above. 

3. All authors undertake that their submission does not infringe on the copyright or any other rights of any third person, nor does it contain anything defamatory, slanderous, libellous, and obscene or any other unlawful content. All authors agree that they shall be solely responsible in case of any legal violations.

4. Contributors who do not meet all the authorship criteria mentioned above should not be listed as authors. However, they should be acknowledged, and their contributions should be specified.

5. It is the responsibility of the corresponding author to obtain written permission to be acknowledged from all acknowledged individuals. Without such written permissions, The Journal shall not publish acknowledgements for that individual.

6. An author may request removal or addition of author(s) after submission, acceptance, or publication. In such a situation, the author shall provide a detailed explanation for the change and a signed statement of agreement for such request.

7. In case of disputes regarding authorship, The Journal and its editorial board shall not be responsible for the determination of attributing authorship and shall not adjudicate such disputes.

8. All authors must fill and sign the Declaration provided at the end of these guidelines, confirming the originality, accuracy, and ethical integrity of their submission. This signed Declaration must accompany the manuscript at the time of submission. Manuscripts submitted without completed Declaration will not be considered for review or publication.

Conduct of the Author:

1. The Journal has the right to exercise its discretion to refuse to publish a submission by an author, if that author(s) has engaged in misconduct.

2. It is the responsibility of The Journal’s editorial board to act if they suspect or know of any allegations of any misconduct or any misconduct committed by an author.

3. Misconduct shall include, but shall not be limited to, the following:

   1. Violations of publication ethics policy of another journal;

   2. Previous criminal convictions by a court of law in any jurisdiction;

   3. Ongoing criminal proceedings in any jurisdiction;

   4. Allegations of, or ongoing proceedings or convictions whether in a court of law or in any institution or organization pertaining to, sexual harassment;

   5. Ongoing disciplinary proceedings, in any institution or organization, including those pertaining to ragging or bullying;

   6. It shall be the responsibility of the author(s), to disclose any details pertaining to such misconduct to The Journal, at the earliest possible time.

4. In cases where misconduct is discovered after the manuscript has been published, The Journal reserves the right to issue a retraction, correction, or editorial note as necessary. The Journal may also inform the relevant institutions or governing bodies if the misconduct is severe. Authors must cooperate with The Journal in rectifying any issues that arise post-publication.

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Concurrent Submission & Text Recycling:

• Plagiarism in all its forms is unethical and is unacceptable and the Centre has a strict policy of Zero Tolerance against plagiarism. By making a submission to The Journal, the author(s) undertakes that the manuscript is their original work, has not been plagiarized and does not contain anything that infringes upon copyright or any other rights of third parties. All submission will be checked for plagiarism by the editorial board. Infringing, offensive or plagiarized submissions will be liable for rejection. 

• It is the responsibility of the author(s) to acknowledge their sources and provide appropriate references in the manner prescribed. Any information obtained through private means (such as from discussion or conversation with third parties), should not be used to include in the manuscript without explicit written permission from the concerned third party.

• The manuscript or any variation of the manuscript submitted to The Journal shall not be simultaneously submitted elsewhere, nor shall it be submitted to The Journal if it has been accepted or submitted elsewhere.

• If the submission made to The Journal or any variation of the submission, in whole or in part, has been published or accepted for publication elsewhere, whether in the same or different language, the author(s) shall, at the time of submission to The Journal or immediately after receiving acceptance of publication, whichever is earlier, make a disclosure to that effect to The Journal, providing all details of the relevant material. The Journal may ask the author(s) for additional details pertaining to the relevant publication.

• Violation of the concurrent submission policy, including the submission of a manuscript under review or published elsewhere, may result in rejection of the manuscript and a potential ban from future submissions to The Journal. Authors are responsible for informing The Journal of any prior submissions or publications of the manuscript or any of its parts.

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Conflict of Interest:

• Author(s) shall disclose any potential conflict of interest that may exist, whether financial, institutional, and personal or any other, which might give the appearance of influence whether in the content of their manuscript or in the review process. 

• Potential conflicts of interest include, among others, any relationship with the editorial board of The Journal, employment, grants, consultancies, representation in a dispute/case and paid expert testimony.

• It is the responsibility of the author(s) to make such disclosures on conflicts of interest to The Journal at the earliest possible time.

• Author(s) must further refer to the Publication Ethical Standards of The Journal to ensure that their submitted work is not in violation of The Journal’s policies. 

• This Journal does not accept articles submitted by students or faculty members from National Law University, Delhi.

• Articles submitted by individuals holding positions on the editorial board, advisory board, or governing bodies of universities will not be accepted by the Journal.

• Authors must disclose all sources of funding for the research presented in the manuscript. This includes institutional support, grants, or any other financial contributions that could influence the research outcomes. Failure to disclose funding sources may result in the rejection of the manuscript.

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Fundamental Errors in Published Works:

• If an author(s) discovers fundamental errors in their work published in The Journal, it is their responsibility to immediately notify The Journal of such errors and co-operate with The Journal in rectifying said errors.

• If the editorial board comes to know of such fundamental error(s) in the published work, they shall provide the author an opportunity to prove the correctness of the work. If this is not proved, it shall be the responsibility of the author to cooperate with The Journal in rectifying such errors.

The editorial board has the discretion to decide in what form and manner the error(s) shall be rectified.

Academic Integrity in Publications:

The Journal is committed to maintaining the highest standards of academic integrity. All authors must adhere to ethical guidelines that ensure the integrity of their research and submissions. 

1. All submissions must be the original work of the author(s). The Journal allows the republishing of previously published work, provided that the author(s) have obtained explicit permission from the journal or publisher where the work was originally published, and the content is not substantially similar to the previous version. Authors must clearly disclose any prior publication of the work and provide appropriate citations. 

2. Authors must accurately present the data and findings in their submissions. Any manipulation, falsification, or fabrication of data is strictly prohibited. Authors must provide accurate references and credit all sources.

3. Authors must ensure that their methodology is transparent and reproducible. Any deviations or modifications from established protocols or standards must be clearly stated.

4. Research involving human participants, animals, or any form of sensitive data must comply with relevant ethical guidelines and regulations. Authors must disclose whether they have obtained ethical approval from an institutional review board or similar body for their research.

5. Submissions to The Journal must not be under review or considered for publication elsewhere. Authors must withdraw any concurrent submissions before submitting to The Journal.

6. All contributors who do not meet the authorship criteria but have provided assistance, resources, or intellectual support should be properly acknowledged. Authors must ensure that all co-authors have approved the final manuscript and that no one who contributed significantly has been omitted.

7. Authors must participate in the peer review process in good faith. They should respond promptly and honestly to reviewers’ comments and revise the manuscript where necessary while providing justifications for any deviations from suggested revisions.

8. In case an author discovers errors or inaccuracies in their published work, they are obligated to immediately inform The Journal and cooperate with the correction or retraction process.

9. Authors must ensure that their work respects the intellectual property rights of others. Any use of copyrighted materials, proprietary data, or third-party resources must be accompanied by appropriate permissions and attributions.

10. Authors are encouraged to provide access to underlying data where applicable or make data available in public repositories, unless restricted by confidentiality or other legitimate concerns. Providing access to raw data helps promote transparency and reproducibility in research.

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Liability Of CTAG and IJTAG:

The views and opinions expressed in the articles submitted to The Journal are solely those of the author(s) and do not reflect the views, policies, or positions of the Centre for Transparency and Accountability in Governance (CTAG) or the International Journal for Transparency and Accountability in Governance (IJTAG). The Centre shall not be held liable for any claims, legal, or otherwise, arising from the content of the articles, including but not limited to the accuracy, completeness, or legality of the information presented. Authors are fully responsible for the content and the consequences of their submissions.

Disclaimer:

This Journal operates in good faith to promote transparency, ethical conduct, and accountability in governance. While The Journal undertakes reasonable efforts to ensure the integrity of the manuscripts it publishes, it shall not be held liable for any wrongful conduct by the author(s), including but not limited to academic misconduct, ethical violations, plagiarism, copyright infringement, or misuse of third-party content. Responsibility for originality, proper attribution, rights clearance, and adherence to ethical standards rests solely with the author(s).

Any failure by the author(s) to disclose conflicts of interest, whether financial, institutional, personal or otherwise, also falls under the sole responsibility of the author(s). The Journal disclaims all liability for any legal or reputational consequences arising from such misconduct or nondisclosure.

In cases of misconduct or violations of these ethical standards, The Journal reserves the right to reject, retract, or correct published work as necessary. However, The Journal disclaims any liability for the actions of the author(s) and the legal or academic consequences resulting therefrom.

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Declaration

As part of the submission process, authors must provide a completed and signed Declaration, confirming compliance with all authorship and ethical standards. Submissions without this completed Declaration will not be accepted.

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The same can be downloaded here: 

Declaration:

I/We, the undersigned author(s) of the Manuscript titled “[insert title of manuscript]”, hereby declare and affirm the following: 

1. I/We affirm that the manuscript submitted is my/our original work and has not been plagiarized, copied, or derived from any other source without proper acknowledgement. I/We affirm that the manuscript does not infringe on any third-party rights, including but not limited to copyrights, trademarks, or intellectual property rights.

2. I/We declare that there are no conflicts of interest, financial, institutional, or personal, that might have influenced the research, writing, or publication of this manuscript. Any potential conflicts of interest have been fully disclosed to The Journal.

3. I/We affirm that all authors listed have made significant contributions to the ideation, drafting, and revision of the manuscript. No individual(s) who contributed substantially to the manuscript has been omitted from the list of authors, and all co-authors have approved the final version of the manuscript submitted for publication.

4. I/We declare that the manuscript or any version of it, has not been previously published or is currently under consideration for publication in any other journal, in cases of republishing, I/We affirm that the necessary permissions have been obtained from the original journal or publisher, and appropriate citations have been included.

5. I/We acknowledge that all contributors who do not meet the authorship criteria but have provided assistance, resources, or intellectual support have been properly acknowledged in the manuscript, and explicit written permissions have been obtained for such acknowledgements. 

6. I/We affirm that all data, findings, and results presented in the manuscript are accurate, genuine, and free from manipulation or falsification. Any deviations from established protocols or standards have been clearly mentioned.

7. I/We declare that the research, if involving human participants, animals, or sensitive data, complies with ethical guidelines and relevant laws. I/We confirm that ethical approval has been obtained from the appropriate institutional review board or body, where applicable.

8. I/We affirm that the manuscript adheres to the ethical standards of academic integrity, including proper citation and attribution of all sources, avoidance of plagiarism, and respect for intellectual property.

9. I/We accept full legal responsibility for the content of the manuscript, including any potential legal consequences arising from the publication of defamatory, slanderous, libelous, or otherwise unlawful content. 

10. I/We understand that CTAG and IJTAG shall not be held liable for any legal actions arising from the content of the manuscript.

11. I/We agree to notify The Journal immediately if any fundamental errors or inaccuracies are discovered in the submitted or published work. I/We will cooperate fully in correcting or retracting the work, if necessary.

I/We hereby declare that all the information provided in this declaration is true and correct to the best of my/our knowledge and belief.

Author(s) Name(s): 

1. _________________ (Signature)

[Name of Author 1]

[Affiliation]

[Email Address]

[Date]

1. __________________ (Signature)

[Name of Author 2]

[Affiliation]

[Email Address]

[Date]