In a marathon 14-part session that ended on October 24, the former business journalist urged students to closely monitor the financial documents and key developments of the companies they cover and keep an eye out for the outliers.

To expose the wily nexus of power and politics in India, journalists need to understand the hidden language of the ‘books of accounts’, said Raja, who has worked with  Mint, Business Standard and The Economic Times.

He demonstrated how irrefutable data could be a great tool in helping journalists speak truth to power.

He also explained how large empires, such as Satyam Computer Services, came crumbling down on the power of simple questions posed on the basis of mismatches in account books available in the public domain. 

Raja blamed the high rate of financial crime in India on poor staffing and general incompetence of the offices that are supposed to keep them in check.