Whistleblowing has become a buzzword in the encyclopedia of corporate governance jargons and myriad regulatory enforcement programs. A whistleblower is an employee or official who blows the whistle on corruption, felony or other wrongdoing, especially on ethico-moral grounds. It is a turbulent situation across the globe where a majority of the enterprises are exposed to deteriorating governance both in the public and corporate realm. With rampant corruption and unethical ventures being practiced, the upright whistleblowers find it extremely arduous to survive. For them, it is like living on landmines which can explode any minute! The million-dollar question is not whether adequate safeguards are being taken with regard to whistleblowers, it is about the avenue that triggers repercussions, which may be favorable or retaliatory. The present paper seeks to unravel the situational and individual antecedents that pave the path for whistleblowing, while touching on the risks that such upright individuals are exposed to. The paper further seeks to rediscover the behavioral dynamics of whistleblowers by examining what motivates them: the desire to be labeled as public heroes or as saints in the corporate milieu. The authors have, throughout this endeavor, sought to throw light on the ethico-moral aspect of human behavior, as this is the root cause of all hassles, with aid of a couple of case studies on morally upright whistleblowers in the Indian scenario.

Whistleblowing is essentially the offspring of unethical initiatives, internal or external to an organization. Today, we speak of providing necessary safeguards for whistleblowers, so that it does not spark off those friction between entities in the enterprise. The question that arises subsequently is, why allow colleagues to blow the whistle? The antecedents to whistleblowing could well be nipped in the bud. However, it is easier said than done. In this era of hyper-competition, enterprises are all engaged in a frantic rat race to achieve the summit of success.

There being only one peak of the mountain, entities representing organizations often undertake the short-cut avenue to success. This ignites ethical erosion, which spreads like a virus within the organizational milieu. Stringent policies and regulations do play a dominant role in upholding the values and ethical framework of the enterprise, but it must not be forgotten that no rules, regulations or policy implementations can goad an individual to be upright, unless he/she is not internally motivated to be so. We shall, therefore, seek to comprehend the rudiments of whistleblowing from an ethico-moral perspective.

Corporate Governance Journal, Examining, Whistleblowing, False Claims Act (FCA), Civil War, Union North, Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV), Confederate South.