Ethics Policy

BazaarBaazi's ethics policy sits on top of the editorial policy. The editorial policy is procedural; this document is principled. It states the commitments BazaarBaazi makes to readers, sources, and the markets we cover.

Independence

We do not take money, securities, gifts, hospitality, travel, or any other inducement from a company, intermediary, fund, or PR agency in exchange for coverage or favourable framing. Standard newsroom hospitality (cup of coffee, lunch at a results press conference, demo access to a public product) is acceptable; trips, sponsored content deals, and equity grants are not.

Conflicts of interest

The editor-in-chief is a full-time markets operator and holds positions in Indian securities. Personal positions are disclosed at disclosure and conflicts. Restricted-list rules apply: no story is published on a security where the editor-in-chief has opened a fresh position in the prior five trading days, and no position is opened on a security covered in a story within five trading days after publish.

Sources and confidentiality

We respect confidentiality with sources who request it. Where we use unnamed sourcing, the story explains why anonymity was warranted and the editor-in-chief verifies the source identity even though the readers do not see it. Anonymous sourcing is reserved for cases where the source is at credible professional or legal risk; it is not used for routine analyst commentary or for the convenience of speed.

Fair dealing with subjects

Companies and individuals criticised in a piece are given a meaningful opportunity to respond before publish, except where doing so would compromise an active investigation. Replies received after publish are appended verbatim to the story or addressed in a follow-up. We do not pull a story to suppress a reply.

Plagiarism

Verbatim text from another publication is quoted and attributed. Paraphrased material is attributed in running copy. Reusing another publication's framing or angle without acknowledgement is plagiarism and will be retracted, with a public note explaining what happened.

Manipulation, market integrity

BazaarBaazi will not publish a story timed to move a security coincidentally with a position taken by the editor or a contributor. Where a piece could move price, the editor-in-chief examines whether the timing is being managed for trade benefit. If yes, the piece is held until the position is closed. The audit trail (draft timestamps, broker statements, intent log) is kept for two years.

Children, vulnerable subjects

Stories involving minors, retail investors disclosed by name in regulator orders, or victims of fraud are handled with extra care. Names are redacted on first publish where the subject is not a public figure and consent has not been obtained, even where the regulator document is public.

Hate, misinformation, and political abuse

BazaarBaazi covers government policy where it touches markets. We do not publish partisan political material, communal framing, or content that targets a community, caste, or religious group. Where a market story has a political angle (defence procurement, divestment timing, regulatory enforcement) the focus stays on the market mechanism.

What an editor will spike a draft over

• An unverifiable quantitative claim that the story relies on
• A buy or sell recommendation slipped past the verdict frame
• A subject not given a chance to reply where the piece is sharply critical
• A source that does not pass the editor-in-chief's identity check on anonymous attribution
• A factual claim where the writer cannot point to the primary source on demand
• A headline that overstates what the body supports

Enforcement

Breaches of this policy are escalated to the editor-in-chief and the outcome is documented internally. Material breaches that affect a published story (e.g., a contributor with an undisclosed conflict) are explained publicly on the corrections page and the story carries a permanent footnote.