Pramesh S Jain
Ten journalists known for their investigative reporting and contributions to public-interest journalism have been recognised for their work spanning corruption, financial fraud, national security, human rights, rural distress and political accountability.
The list includes veteran journalists Sucheta Dalal, Josy Joseph, Ritu Sarin, Aniruddha Bahal, Binish Thomas, P. Sainath, Chitra Subramaniam, Neha Dixit, Priyanka Dubey and N.Ram.
Sucheta Dalal :
Sucheta Dalal is one of India’s prominent financial investigative journalists, with a career spanning more than three decades.
She gained national recognition for her reporting on the 1992 Harshad Mehta securities scam, which exposed major weaknesses in India’s banking and stock-market systems.
Her investigations have also covered corporate wrongdoing, banking irregularities, stock-market manipulation and regulatory failures. Her work has earned her the Padma Shri.
Josy Joseph :
Josy Joseph has spent more than three decades reporting on corruption, national security, governance and the networks connecting political, corporate and bureaucratic power.
His books A Feast of Vultures and The Silent Coup examined corruption, institutional power and India’s political and security establishment.
His journalism has won major honours, including the Prem Bhatia Award and the Ramnath Goenka Journalist of the Year Award.
Ritu Sarin :
Ritu Sarin is known for investigative reporting on corruption, money laundering, national security and international financial networks.
She has participated in major cross-border investigations including the Panama Papers, Paradise Papers, Swiss Leaks, Offshore Leaks and FinCEN Files, working with international investigative journalism networks.
Her work involves analysing large volumes of financial records to trace offshore companies, banking transactions and links to India.
Aniruddha Bahal :
Aniruddha Bahal is one of India’s best-known practitioners of undercover and sting journalism. He co-founded Tehelka and later established Cobrapost.
His investigations, particularly Operation West End, brought hidden-camera journalism into the national spotlight.
Operation Duryodhana documented MPs allegedly accepting money in connection with asking questions in Parliament.
Bahal’s work helped establish undercover investigations as an important tool for exposing concealed wrongdoing.
Binish Thomas :
Binish Thomas has more than two decades of experience in investigative journalism, geopolitics, public policy and international affairs.
His reporting focuses on national security, international developments and geopolitical issues affecting India’s strategic interests.
His work has examined China’s Belt and Road Initiative, debt diplomacy, developments in Africa and the Middle East, and India’s changing strategic environment.
Thomas has also reported on threats faced by journalists in several countries and has received recognition from journalism and media organisations in different parts of India. He was among the journalists recognised with a Global Excellence Award in 2026.
P. Sainath :
Veteran journalist P. Sainath is internationally recognised for his reporting on rural poverty, agriculture, farmer distress and inequality.
His extensive field reporting brought national attention to farmer suicides, rural indebtedness and the problems faced by marginalised communities.
He later founded the People’s Archive of Rural India (PARI), which documents the lives, livelihoods, languages and cultures of rural communities.
Sainath has received several major honours, including the Ramon Magsaysay Award.
Chitra Subramaniam :
Chitra Subramaniam is closely associated with one of India’s landmark political investigations — the Bofors scandal.
Her reporting involved following documentary evidence and sources across Sweden, Switzerland and India to investigate alleged payments linked to the defence deal.
The investigation demonstrated the importance of persistence, confidential sources and documentary evidence in cross-border investigative journalism.
Neha Dixit :
Independent journalist Neha Dixit is known for investigative reporting on politics, gender, human rights, violence, trafficking and marginalised communities.
Her work has examined allegations of institutional abuse, trafficking, communal violence and human-rights violations. Her reporting has also exposed her to legal challenges, threats and online harassment.
Dixit has received several journalism honours, including the Committee to Protect Journalists’ International Press Freedom Award.
Priyanka Dubey :
Priyanka Dubey is known for investigative journalism focusing on crime, human trafficking, violence against women, child exploitation and human rights.
Her reporting has examined trafficking networks involving women and children and attempted to connect individual cases to wider criminal and institutional systems.
Her work has received honours including the Knight International Journalism Award, Kurt Schork Award and Ramnath Goenka Award.
N. Ram:
Veteran journalist N. Ram has spent decades reporting on politics, corruption, public institutions, foreign policy and abuse of power.
He played a key role in The Hindu’s investigation into the Bofors arms deal, working alongside Chitra Subramaniam and other journalists.
The investigation became one of India’s most consequential examples of document-based political investigative journalism.
N. Ram’s contributions to journalism have been recognised with several honours, including the Padma Bhushan.
Together, the journalists represent different strands of investigative journalism in India — from financial and corporate investigations to undercover reporting, rural reporting, human-rights journalism, cross-border financial investigations and national-security reporting.
