Publication Ethics Policy

The International Journal of Kashmir Studies (IJKS) is committed to maintaining high standards of publication ethics and academic integrity throughout the submission, peer-review, and publication process. Authors, editors, and reviewers are expected to act honestly, transparently, and responsibly and to comply with accepted principles of scholarly publishing.

Authors must submit original work and ensure that all sources, quotations, data, and ideas are properly acknowledged. Fabrication or falsification of data, plagiarism, duplicate publication, inappropriate authorship, citation manipulation, and other forms of academic misconduct are not acceptable. Authors must disclose any financial or personal conflicts of interest and obtain appropriate ethical approval or informed consent where required for research involving human participants or sensitive information.

Editors are responsible for evaluating manuscripts fairly and objectively, based on their academic quality, originality, relevance, and contribution to the field. Editorial decisions should not be influenced by an author’s nationality, institutional affiliation, gender, political views, religion, or other personal characteristics. Editors must maintain confidentiality and should not disclose information about submitted manuscripts except where necessary for the review and publication process.

Reviewers must provide objective, constructive, and confidential assessments of manuscripts. They should disclose any potential conflict of interest and should not use unpublished information obtained during peer review for personal or professional benefit. Reviewers should also identify relevant published work that has not been appropriately cited where necessary.

The journal takes allegations of research or publication misconduct seriously. Where concerns arise, the editorial team may investigate the matter and may request explanations or supporting information from the authors. Depending on the circumstances, appropriate actions may include rejection of a manuscript, withdrawal or correction of a published article, or other measures consistent with accepted standards of publication ethics.

The journal is committed to ensuring that its publication process remains fair, transparent, confidential, and academically rigorous, while protecting the integrity of the scholarly record.