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Wikipedia's page on ANI claims that the agency ‘has been criticized for acting as a propaganda tool for the current central government, disseminating material from a network of fake news websites, and misreporting events’.
The Delhi High Court, on Tuesday, issued a notice to Wikipedia in response to a defamation suit filed by ANI, seeking damages amounting to 2 crore rupees. ANI sought the removal of defamatory content published by Wikipedia.
The bench of Justice Navin Chawla issued a notice regarding ANI's request for interim relief and scheduled the next hearing for August 20.
ANI, represented by Advocate Sidhanth Kumar, initiated a lawsuit against the Wikimedia Foundation and its officials claiming that false and defamatory content was published with the intent to damage the news agency's reputation and goodwill.
Specific claims on Wikipedia's page included accusations of ANI's aggressive journalism model under new management and false allegations that Muslims were blamed for the sexual assault and rape of two Kuki women during the 2023 Manipur violence.
Advocate Sidhanth Kumar argued that the content was defamatory and claimed that Wikipedia, as a public utility, should not operate like a private entity. He also noted that Wikipedia had restricted ANI from editing its page, allowing only its own editors to make changes.
ANI also alleged that Wikimedia officials actively prevented edits to remove the disputed content, thereby losing their safe-harbor protection under section 79(1) of the Act and becoming liable for hosting and publishing defamatory content.
The court acknowledged that Wikipedia was entitled to hold opinions but would need to justify its actions in court, recognizing it as a defamation case.
Case Title: ANI Media Pvt. Ltd. v Wikimedia Foundation
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