Leadership and Integrity: Lessons from the Indian Food Inspector who Drained a Reservoir to Retrieve his Mobile Phone
In an astonishing and shocking incident, an Indian food inspector, Rajesh Vishwas, ordered the draining of a reservoir to retrieve his mobile phone, which he had dropped while attempting to take a selfie during a picnic with friends. He claimed the phone contained sensitive government data and pumped two million liters of water over three days to recover it, causing significant harm to the country’s water resources. Although an extreme example, it highlights the issues and consequences of dishonest and unethical leadership. Normalizing such behavior may corrode trust within organizations, prompt others to follow suit, and lead to severe consequences.
Errors in judgement and a lack of integrity go against the fundamental expectations of being a leader. A leader should not be selfish, think of others, and do everything in their power to prevent harm, whether that involves depriving a water-scarce country of much-needed water or ignoring pandemic lockdown rules. Clients, employees, and the public demand honesty and integrity, making it a fundamental requirement. When this is not met, it puts the leadership position in danger.
The consequences of unethical behavior are severe and far-reaching, impacting both business and political entities. Misconduct in the work environment, bribery, and misuse of public funds are often never unique examples, but rather a cascading effect that reinforces and spreads corrupt behavior. As Vishwas’ incident shows, when an embarrassing or ego-sore issue happens, panic mode sets in, which can lead to impulsive and irrational decisions. Often an elaborate cover-up causes significantly more damage than the initial offense, like the Watergate scandal or Bill Clinton’s scandalous affair with White House intern Monica Lewinsky.
Leadership should seek to make informed decisions, assess risk, and find effective solutions to problems with the help of team members. There are unquestionably times when it is imperative to argue with one’s boss to create successful and effective strategies for survival. Encouraging a group of “yes men” following every whim is destructive. Rather, there should be an emphasis on being open to criticism and being ready to pivot when necessary.
Unfortunately, when an incident happens, sometimes, the leadership or management may attempt to cover it up or deny responsibility altogether. This approach only worsens the situation. It’s better to own up, apologize, and take steps to restore what was damaged. Some semblance of contrition is essential, and leaders must refrain from justifying their actions, as they may do more harm than good. Moreover, if a mistake is made, a leader should take responsibility, learn from it, and move forward. Leaders striving towards ethical leadership learn from their mistakes.
Ethical leadership involves leading from the front and implementing practices that promote integrity, accountability, empathy, and fairness. By giving practical examples, leaders can steer their team towards what it means to be honest, transparent, and upright, showing that the benefits of honesty outweigh any short-term gain from unethical behavior.
Integrity, as a leadership value, is more critical than ever in the business environment. Maintaining trustworthiness, ethics, and moral principles, values like collaboration, focusing on results and accountability are necessary tools for organizational success. Trust and ethical conduct must be fostered regularly at all levels in the organization.
Conclusion
Leadership and integrity go hand in hand, and a leader lacking these traits can have serious and far-reaching consequences, which can lead to problems for the company or organization as a whole. Normalizing unethical behaviors, even on a minor scale, can corrode trust within the organization, leading to severe consequences, both legal and financial. Leaders should work to promote ethical leadership values within their teams and strive to lead in a manner that prioritizes honesty, transparency, and accountability. With this approach, leaders can move their organization forward while building trust and securing the support of their clients, employees, and stakeholders.
Summary:
The case of Rajesh Vishwas, an Indian food inspector, who ordered the draining of a reservoir to retrieve his mobile phone damaged by his own actions highlights the pitfalls of unethical leadership. Such behaviors go against the basic expectations of what good leadership should be. Leaders should not be selfish and prioritize individual desires over the good of the organization or the public. Encouraging dishonest or unethical conduct is corrosive and can prompt others to follow suit, causing serious legal and financial consequences for an organization. Ethical leaders make informed decisions, assess risks, and find effective solutions to problems with the help of team members. They are also open to dissent, take responsibility for their actions when necessary, and maintain a focus on transparency and accountability. By implementing ethical leadership values in their organization, leaders can build trust, gain support and secure success for their organization.
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How bad was your week? Well fear not. Rajesh Vishwas is here to make you feel better. The Indian government official was recently suspended after ordering him to drain a deposit so that he could retrieve his mobile phone, which had been dropped when he was trying to take a selfie while having a picnic with friends.
Taking the old “but I need it for work” excuse to whole new levels, Vishwas, a food inspector, claimed that his Samsung mobile phone contained sensitive government data and therefore needed to be found. It took three days to pump 2 million liters of water from the reservoir, enough to irrigate more than a thousand acres of farmland in a country suffering from water shortages. The phone was found but, as expected, it was flooded and unusable.
Leaving aside the question of whether he tried the old “put it in a bag of rice” trick, the whole scenario is undoubtedly a sham. But there are also easy lessons from this victory over the abuse of power that should be applied to anyone in a position of authority facing a management decision.
Errors in judgment and a sheer lack of integrity go against the most basic expectations of what it means to be a leader. There is a fundamental requirement to not be selfish, to think of others, and to do everything possible not to do harm, for example, depriving a scorching country of a much-needed resource or throwing a party in the heart of the government when its the nation is under pandemic lockdown rules. Employees, customers, and the public tend to demand it.
However, normalizing dishonest or unethical behavior is corrosive. Two-thirds of countries rank below 50 on Transparency International’s corruption index, where zero is highly corrupt and 100 is very clean. Bad behavior can start slowly, but over time it erodes trust within organizations, prompts others to follow suit, and can have serious consequences, legal or otherwise. New examples emerge every day in both business and politics, from the misuse of public funds and taking bribes to other types of misconduct in the workplace, and these are often never unique examples but rather a waterfall.
As the case of Vishwas shows, when an embarrassing or ego-sore incident occurs, leaders often make decisions in a panic. In such circumstances, there is a tendency to be impulsive and irrational: empty that warehouse, rob that political headquarters. Such responses may even involve elaborate cover-ups that cause more damage than the original offense. Who can forget the Watergate scandal that brought down US President Richard Nixon? Or Bill Clinton’s denial of his affair with White House intern Monica Lewinsky? When the evidence emerged, he faced impeachment proceedings for perjury and obstruction of justice related to his attempts to cover up the affair.
Counselors and helpers should not act as facilitators of misbehavior. Good managers seek to make informed decisions, assess risks, and find effective solutions to problems with the help of team members. Sometimes it’s important to say things that you know your boss might not like but are necessary for his success and survival. As a leader, it is essential to be open to dissent. A chain of “yes men” following every crazy whim is just harmful.
And finally, even if you don’t admit failure, some semblance of contrition is vital. After Vishwas’ story went viral, the official sought to justify his actions, claiming that he had obtained the relevant approvals from the department of water resources. (In turn, they claim that he drained more water than allowed, though the fact that they agreed to any amount is itself scandalous.) After his suspension and being asked to pay a fine, he still called the reaction “over the top.” Sometimes it’s better to know when he’ll quit or pay for a new phone.
https://www.ft.com/content/35a501b5-d8c5-4765-893d-c69128eebf21
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