Publication Ethics

Authorship

All listed authors must have made a meaningful scholarly contribution and must approve the submitted version. Gift, honorary and ghost authorship are not permitted. Any change of authorship after submission requires the written consent of all authors.

Originality and plagiarism

All research submissions are screened for similarity. A similarity score is an indicator, not a verdict — Sanskrit quotations, standard definitions and references inflate scores, and every report is interpreted by an editor. Substantial unattributed copying, translated plagiarism or duplicate publication leads to rejection.

Conflicts of interest

Authors, reviewers and editors must disclose any interest that could affect judgment, including institutional relationships, supervision, recent collaboration, family relationships and financial interests. An editor with a conflict withdraws from handling the manuscript and an independent editor is appointed.

Use of AI tools

AI tools cannot be listed as authors. Authors may use them for language polishing, formatting or organising ideas, provided the scholarly responsibility remains with the author and substantial use is disclosed. AI tools must never be used to generate quotations, references, data or translations.

Reviewers and editors must not upload manuscripts to public AI tools. Manuscripts are confidential.

Corrections and retractions

Minor errors that do not affect conclusions are corrected by a published erratum. Serious errors, plagiarism, duplicate publication or unethical research may lead to retraction after investigation. Any notice is linked to the original article, states its reason plainly, and the original record remains accessible and clearly marked.

Complaints and appeals

An author may appeal a rejection on grounds of procedural error, conflict of interest, factual misunderstanding or evidence of unfair review. Disagreement with a reviewer's opinion is not by itself a ground for appeal. Appeals should be sent to the editorial office within 15 working days of the decision. Complaints are acknowledged within 7 working days.