M P Rannika, National Law School of India University
INTRODUCTION
In the ancient and Medieval periods, the concept of whistleblowing is referred to as “Shuchakas” which persons inform the authority of any misconduct or wrongdoing, the concept of whistleblowing is in line with the same. The term whistleblowing consists of two words which are ‘whistle” and “Blower” which theoretically means a person who unveils illicit work. Whistle-blower play a crucial role in corporations as corporations raise capital through shareholder investments, whose interests have to be safeguarded by the management of the company. “When the management of such a large scattered shareholding is placed in a few hands, there must be a mechanism in place to check these powers otherwise, this could lead to indifferent behaviour. The whistle-blower policy discourages misconduct or, at least, makes management aware that someone is watching out for them and has the power to report anything to higher authorities. Furthermore, no amount of regulatory checks can bring out the information which an insider whistle blower can bring. This fully rationalizes having a such policy in place to protect the whistle-blower1
