Advisors

Kumar Rajan

Advisor — Editorial Standards & Verification

South Asia (IST)

Verification Dossier Structure Source Grading Right of Reply Evidence Logs

Bio: Kumar is a process-first editor who likes clean notes, clear claims, and simple proof.
Focus: He keeps our long dossiers readable, so the facts do not get buried.
Beats: Accountability reporting, public integrity, institutional failures, procurement trails.
Capabilities: He turns messy material into a straight line: claim → proof → impact.
Responsibilities: He checks that each Ekalavya Hansaj dossier shows what we know, how we know it, and what we cannot prove yet.
Career Summary: He has spent years training teams to verify fast without cutting corners.
Credibility Markers: Known for strict sourcing rules and calm judgment in high-pressure reviews.
Departments: Editorial board support, verification QA, dossier methodology desk.
Role & Scope: He reviews verification logs and the public-facing methodology section before publication.
Expertise: OSINT cross-checks; timeline integrity; evidence register hygiene; quote accuracy; context checks; right-of-reply planning; correction readiness; headline proof-matching.
Proven Work: Built verification checklists used across multi-team investigations; coached junior researchers on source grading.
Independence Notes: No advertising involvement; guidance is limited to method and standards.
Current Affiliations: Independent editorial consultant and newsroom trainer.
Consulting Clients: Disclosed on request when relevant to a specific topic area.
Conflict Handling: If a dossier overlaps his private consulting, he steps out and the review is reassigned.

Email Kumar Rajan

Priyanka Pandey

Advisor — Legal Risk & Media Law

India / UK hours (IST–GMT)

Defamation Injunction Risk Right of Reply Records Litigation Prep

Bio: Priyanka is a media-law advisor who explains legal risk in plain words.
Focus: She helps us publish hard facts without walking into avoidable legal traps.
Beats: Defamation, privacy, court reporting boundaries, takedown demands, legal notices.
Capabilities: She spots weak wording that can be twisted, then replaces it with precise language.
Responsibilities: She sets the legal checklist used when Ekalavya Hansaj prepares a high-stakes dossier.
Career Summary: She has guided reporters through pre-publication legal reviews and court deadlines.
Credibility Markers: Trusted for careful wording and strong documentation habits.
Departments: Legal risk desk, corrections workflow support, notices intake support.
Role & Scope: She advises on pre-publication risk checks and right-of-reply wording on request.
Expertise: Defamation basics; contempt boundaries; privacy and public interest tests; injunction response; records handling; cross-border publication risk; settlement hygiene; claim phrasing discipline.
Proven Work: Helped teams keep source-backed reporting publishable under threat letters; improved reply requests so they are fair and clear.
Independence Notes: No role in story selection and no involvement in sponsor decisions.
Current Affiliations: Practicing lawyer focused on media and information disputes.
Consulting Clients: Not listed publicly for safety; disclosed internally when a match matters.
Conflict Handling: If she has acted for a party connected to a dossier, she declines that review.

Email Priyanka Pandey

Manju Sharma

Advisor — Safety, Field Risk & Reporter Support

South Asia / Middle East overlap

Field Safety Threat Plans Source Protection Travel Risk Trauma Care

Bio: Manju works with teams who report in tense places and need steady safety habits.
Focus: She makes sure our people come back safe and our sources stay protected.
Beats: Field risk, harassment response, secure meetups, travel routing, hostile surveillance awareness.
Capabilities: She turns fear into steps: what to do today, what to avoid, who to call.
Responsibilities: She reviews safety plans when Ekalavya Hansaj assigns reporters to sensitive dossiers.
Career Summary: She has supported journalists and researchers during threats, raids, and legal pressure.
Credibility Markers: Respected for practical plans that work outside a conference room.
Departments: Safety desk, source protection support, incident response support.
Role & Scope: She designs risk plans and checks emergency contacts, routes, and escalation steps.
Expertise: Threat modeling; travel checklists; hostile environment basics; secure meetings; harassment triage; device hygiene habits; trauma-aware debriefs; safety training drills.
Proven Work: Built field checklists used in multi-country reporting; coached teams on low-profile movement.
Independence Notes: No access to target lists unless required for safety planning and approved in writing.
Current Affiliations: Safety trainer and risk advisor for media teams.
Consulting Clients: Shared only when it does not increase risk for any person.
Conflict Handling: If her work connects to a dossier subject, she steps aside and flags the link.

Email Manju Sharma

Aditi Bansal

Advisor — Data Integrity & Evidence Handling

Europe / India overlap (CET–IST)

Chain of Custody Data Cleaning Reproducibility Audit Trails Spreadsheets

Bio: Aditi is a data-first advisor who likes neat files, clear columns, and repeatable checks.
Focus: She helps us keep evidence tidy so readers can trust the story.
Beats: Data leaks, datasets from public records, financial tables, cross-file matching, error hunting.
Capabilities: She finds mistakes early by checking the same claim three different ways.
Responsibilities: She supports Ekalavya Hansaj teams in keeping a clean evidence register for every dossier.
Career Summary: She has worked on data reviews where one wrong cell can break a whole narrative.
Credibility Markers: Known for strict logs and simple explanations that non-technical editors can follow.
Departments: Data desk, evidence register QA, methodology appendix support.
Role & Scope: She validates key datasets, sampling steps, and calculation notes used in publication.
Expertise: Data cleaning; duplicate detection; timestamp sanity checks; source file tracking; reproducible steps; spreadsheet risk checks; chart-to-table verification; audit-ready notes.
Proven Work: Created review templates that catch counting errors; trained teams to document every transformation.
Independence Notes: No say in what we investigate; her work is limited to data quality and documentation.
Current Affiliations: Data quality lead in a research environment.
Consulting Clients: Declared internally when a topic overlaps a current contract.
Conflict Handling: If her employer has a stake in a dossier topic, she refuses that advisory request.

Email Aditi Bansal

Sachin Sharma

Advisor — Cyber, Device Security & Secure Workflows

North America (ET) and India overlap

Account Security Secure Storage Device Hygiene Incident Response Encryption

Bio: Sachin helps news teams avoid simple mistakes that lead to big leaks.
Focus: He strengthens how we store, share, and protect investigation material.
Beats: Account takeovers, phishing, secure collaboration, malware risk, endpoint safety.
Capabilities: He builds habits that are easy to follow even on a busy reporting day.
Responsibilities: He advises how Ekalavya Hansaj should lock down dossier notes, evidence files, and reporter accounts.
Career Summary: He has supported teams after attacks and has helped prevent repeat incidents.
Credibility Markers: Trusted for clear checklists and fast triage during security events.
Departments: Security desk, incident response support, secure workflow training.
Role & Scope: He reviews secure workflow setup for sensitive projects and high-risk communications.
Expertise: Password manager rollouts; MFA enforcement; phishing drills; secure file permissions; device patch routines; safe link handling; secure backups; incident playbooks.
Proven Work: Helped teams recover from account compromise; redesigned access rules so fewer people touch sensitive material.
Independence Notes: He does not read sources or decide story direction; his job is protection, not editing.
Current Affiliations: Cybersecurity practitioner focused on operational safety.
Consulting Clients: Not posted publicly; shared internally if a direct overlap exists.
Conflict Handling: If his client is connected to a subject, he blocks himself from that advisory path.

Email Sachin Sharma

Victoria Carson

Advisor — Human Rights & Harm Minimization

UK / EU (GMT–CET)

Harm Review Victim Safety Redactions Ethics Vulnerable Groups

Bio: Victoria is a harm-review advisor who pushes us to be brave without being careless.
Focus: She helps us publish truth while reducing avoidable damage to real people.
Beats: Human rights impacts, vulnerable sources, doxxing risks, sensitive images, retraumatization risk.
Capabilities: She asks the hard question: who gets hurt if we publish this detail today?
Responsibilities: She supports Ekalavya Hansaj on redaction choices and safety wording for sensitive dossiers.
Career Summary: She has worked with watchdog groups and newsrooms handling high-risk disclosures.
Credibility Markers: Known for firm ethics calls and clear, humane language.
Departments: Harm review lane, ethics guidance lane, post-publication review support.
Role & Scope: She advises on redactions, naming decisions, and risk notes for affected people.
Expertise: Harm checks; redaction logic; consent boundaries; image ethics; survivor safety; child safety rules; contextual warnings; retaliation risk assessment.
Proven Work: Helped teams cut unsafe details while keeping the core proof intact; improved how we phrase allegations responsibly.
Independence Notes: No role in sponsorship and no influence over investigation targets.
Current Affiliations: Human rights advisor and policy specialist.
Consulting Clients: Shared when safe and relevant; otherwise handled confidentially.
Conflict Handling: If she has worked with a party in the dossier, she recuses immediately and documents it.

Email Victoria Carson

Stephanie Owers

Advisor — Regional Context & Language Integrity

Australia / Asia-Pacific (AET)

Language Checks Context Notes Translation Integrity Cultural Risk Names & Places

Bio: Stephanie helps teams avoid sloppy language that can change the meaning of a document.
Focus: She keeps translations clean and context accurate across regions and dialects.
Beats: Place-name accuracy, political terms, cultural nuance, cross-border narratives, translation reviews.
Capabilities: She catches small wording errors before they turn into big public mistakes.
Responsibilities: She advises Ekalavya Hansaj on wording checks when dossiers involve multiple languages or local terms.
Career Summary: She has reviewed translation work for public reports where precision matters.
Credibility Markers: Known for careful reading and a strong eye for misquoted phrasing.
Departments: Language integrity lane, regional context lane, copy accuracy support.
Role & Scope: She reviews key translated quotes and names/places lists used in publication.
Expertise: Translation spot-checks; glossary building; proper-noun audits; quote meaning checks; culture-aware phrasing; respectful terms; context footnotes; consistency across sections.
Proven Work: Built glossaries that reduce repeat errors; improved name spelling accuracy across long files.
Independence Notes: She is not part of editing decisions unless asked for translation accuracy only.
Current Affiliations: Language and communications specialist.
Consulting Clients: Disclosed internally if a client is tied to a region covered in a dossier.
Conflict Handling: If she has ties to a group mentioned in a dossier, she steps back from that review.

Email Stephanie Owers

Rich Meservey

Advisor — Financial Crime & Corporate Records

United States (PT)

Company Filings Beneficial Ownership Money Trails Sanctions Basics Procurement

Bio: Rich follows money trails and corporate records with patient, stubborn work.
Focus: He helps us show who benefits, who signs, and who quietly profits.
Beats: Shell companies, procurement red flags, offshore structures, asset moves, vendor networks.
Capabilities: He links filings, names, and dates until the story becomes hard to deny.
Responsibilities: He supports Ekalavya Hansaj on corporate-record checks and money-flow explanation inside dossiers.
Career Summary: He has supported investigations where paperwork tells the truth better than interviews.
Credibility Markers: Known for careful sourcing and clean citation of public records.
Departments: Financial crime lane, records lane, evidence appendix support.
Role & Scope: He reviews corporate records, contract language, and ownership claims used in narrative sections.
Expertise: Company registry searches; director histories; beneficial ownership clues; procurement pattern checks; sanctions context; contract reading; asset tracing basics; timeline correlation.
Proven Work: Helped teams connect vendor webs; improved how we explain financial structures to ordinary readers.
Independence Notes: No control over what we publish; he only advises on records and clarity.
Current Affiliations: Financial investigations specialist.
Consulting Clients: Disclosed internally when the topic is connected to a current engagement.
Conflict Handling: If he has worked for an entity tied to a dossier, he opts out and records it.

Email Rich Meservey

Capucine Landry

Advisor — OSINT & Digital Verification

France (CET)

OSINT Geolocation Image Checks Video Verification Platform Research

Bio: Capucine teaches teams how to confirm what a post really shows and where it happened.
Focus: She helps us avoid viral lies by verifying digital traces step by step.
Beats: Geolocation, image matching, platform archives, metadata handling, false content patterns.
Capabilities: She turns internet noise into evidence that can survive public questioning.
Responsibilities: She guides Ekalavya Hansaj on OSINT methods used in dossier proof sections and verification logs.
Career Summary: She has trained researchers to verify images and clips without guessing.
Credibility Markers: Known for careful screenshots, archive links, and repeatable verification notes.
Departments: OSINT lane, verification log lane, evidence register support.
Role & Scope: She reviews OSINT steps for key claims and checks that citations are reproducible.
Expertise: Reverse image checks; geolocation basics; time-of-day checks; archive use; platform history review; visual clue mapping; clip authenticity checks; claim boundary setting.
Proven Work: Built training drills for new researchers; helped teams document OSINT steps for reader trust.
Independence Notes: No access to confidential source identities unless required and approved for safety.
Current Affiliations: Open-source research trainer.
Consulting Clients: Shared internally when required by topic overlap.
Conflict Handling: If she has personal ties to a region or actor in a dossier, she flags it and steps aside.

Email Capucine Landry

Craig Forero

Advisor — Forensics & Evidence Authentication

United States (CT)

Document Checks File Authenticity Forensic Review Evidence Notes Integrity Tests

Bio: Craig is a forensics advisor who helps teams test whether a file is real, altered, or incomplete.
Focus: He keeps our evidence handling strict so the dossier rests on solid ground.
Beats: Document authenticity, file consistency, basic forensic checks, evidence packaging for review.
Capabilities: He finds the weak seam in a file, then tells us how to stitch it up with proof.
Responsibilities: He advises Ekalavya Hansaj on evidence authentication steps for documents used in long dossiers.
Career Summary: He has supported sensitive reviews where one forged page could ruin months of work.
Credibility Markers: Known for clear notes, conservative conclusions, and careful wording.
Departments: Forensics lane, evidence register lane, verification appendix support.
Role & Scope: He reviews authenticity indicators and helps document chain-of-custody notes when needed.
Expertise: File consistency checks; document comparison; anomaly spotting; version tracking; screenshot hygiene; evidence packaging; conservative conclusion writing; preservation basics.
Proven Work: Helped teams spot edited PDFs; improved documentation of how evidence was received and handled.
Independence Notes: No influence over targets and no involvement in advertising or revenue decisions.
Current Affiliations: Forensic reviewer and evidence-handling consultant.
Consulting Clients: Not listed publicly; reviewed internally when a conflict risk appears.
Conflict Handling: If he has been retained in a related dispute, he declines the assignment and records the reason.

Email Craig Forero

Ana Auffrey

Advisor — Science, Health & Claims Review

United States (ET)

Health Claims Scientific Accuracy Risk Language Public Harm Clarity

Bio: Ana helps us talk about science and health in a way that is accurate and easy to understand.
Focus: She prevents overstatement, fear wording, and sloppy numbers in health-related dossiers.
Beats: Public health claims, lab results context, statistical meaning, medical wording, risk framing.
Capabilities: She turns complicated research into plain language that stays correct.
Responsibilities: She checks health and science claims when Ekalavya Hansaj publishes dossiers that touch medicine or research.
Career Summary: She has reviewed reports where one wrong medical line could cause real harm.
Credibility Markers: Known for careful reading of study limits and honest explanation of uncertainty.
Departments: Science lane, health claims review lane, harm minimization support.
Role & Scope: She reviews key health claims and ensures numbers are described without exaggeration.
Expertise: Study-limit checks; basic stats hygiene; risk wording; medical term clarity; evidence strength grading; misinformation warning signs; claims trimming; reader-friendly explanations.
Proven Work: Helped teams rewrite technical paragraphs into clear public language; prevented unsupported conclusions.
Independence Notes: No role in editorial approvals; her advice is limited to accuracy and safety wording.
Current Affiliations: Science communications and claims review specialist.
Consulting Clients: Disclosed internally when a topic overlaps paid work.
Conflict Handling: If her work touches a party in the dossier, she steps back and documents it.

Email Ana Auffrey

Alison Orendain

Advisor — Ethics, Corrections & Post‑Publication Review

Canada / US (ET)

Corrections Ethics Reader Trust Review Notes Accountability

Bio: Alison helps us fix mistakes fast and explain changes without hiding anything.
Focus: She strengthens how we correct, clarify, and learn after a dossier goes live.
Beats: Corrections wording, update notes, fairness checks, reader complaints, post-publication review.
Capabilities: She keeps our trust strong by making changes clean, visible, and honest.
Responsibilities: She advises how Ekalavya Hansaj documents corrections and handles serious challenges to a published dossier.
Career Summary: She has worked with editorial teams on accountability routines that outlast one story cycle.
Credibility Markers: Known for firm standards and plain explanations that reduce confusion.
Departments: Corrections lane, ethics lane, post-publication review lane.
Role & Scope: She reviews correction language and post-publication review notes when a case is complex.
Expertise: Corrections structure; update transparency; fairness checks; complaint triage; evidence re-check routines; wording clarity; reader trust signals; internal review notes.
Proven Work: Built correction templates that are easy to follow; helped teams handle disputes without panic.
Independence Notes: She is not part of advertising choices and has no authority over investigation targets.
Current Affiliations: Editorial standards and accountability advisor.
Consulting Clients: Shared internally when relevant and safe.
Conflict Handling: If she has a personal link to a subject, she hands the review to another advisor.

Email Alison Orendain

Advisory categories

What advisors do

What advisors do not do

Policies

Kumar Rajan

Priyanka Pandey

Manju Sharma

Aditi Bansal

Sachin Sharma

Victoria Carson

Stephanie Owers

Rich Meservey

Capucine Landry

Craig Forero

Ana Auffrey

Alison Orendain

What counts as a conflict

Required disclosures

Recusal rules

How advisors are selected

Term length

Removal policy

Visible to readers

Standard dossier components

Used inside the newsroom

Advisor-led training programs

Office hours / clinics

Standards updates

Are advisors responsible for what you publish?

Do advisors review every dossier?

Can an advisor stop a story?

Are advisors paid?

How do you prevent conflicts of interest?

Can I apply or nominate an advisor?

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