Wikimedia must remove India content deemed defamatory, court rules

The operator of Wikipedia has been ordered to remove statements deemed defamatory by an Indian court from the page of a domestic news agency it hosts, the latest such directive to the popular online encyclopedia.

The Wikimedia Foundation is the second major tech platform, following X, formerly Twitter, to become embroiled in recent years in court battles over content takedown orders in India.

Last year the agency, ANI, sued Wikimedia for defamation in the Delhi High Court, citing a Wikipedia description that it faced criticism for being a government "propaganda tool" and sought removal of such statements.

In an order on Thursday, the court said, "The impugned statements are... defamatory and tarnish the professional reputation of" ANI, and should be removed.

The foundation did not respond to a request for comment on the ruling and whether it will appeal.

Reuters, which owns a 26% stake in ANI, did not respond to a request for comment. It has previously said it is not involved in ANI's business practices or operations.

The court will continue to hear the case, in which ANI seeks damages of about 20 million rupees ($240,000) and an apology from Wikimedia.

The ruling "affirms the fundamental right to reputation", a lawyer for ANI, Sidhant Kumar, told Reuters in a statement.

As a result of the dispute, US-based Wikimedia has raised questions about free speech in the world's largest democracy.

In October, the court ordered the takedown of a Wikipedia page related to the dispute, calling it "interference in court proceedings", prompting Wikimedia to go to the Supreme Court in January.

Wikimedia said in its Supreme Court filing that "the selective and permanent takedown... creates a chilling effect on free speech, and restricts access to knowledge".

X is also challenging government orders to block some posts about Indian farmers' protests in 2021.