Indian Apex Court Restores Wikipedia Article About an Ongoing Lawsuit

On May 9, 2025, the Supreme Court of India overturned a Delhi High Court order that had required the removal of an English Wikipedia article about an ongoing lawsuit. The Supreme Court emphasized that public discussion and constructive criticism of judicial proceedings are consistent with, and not opposed to, the principles of the Indian Constitution.  On the same day, the Wikimedia Foundation reinstated the Wikipedia article, and our global community of volunteers started editing within minutes. For us, this highlights the significance of protecting the rights of Wikipedia’s volunteer editors and shows that articles they create using reliable sources are considered part of the public’s right to know—even when those articles discuss lawsuits involving Wikipedia itself. 

In October 2024, the Wikimedia Foundation (Foundation) filed an appeal as part of an ongoing defamation suit filed against the Foundation by Asian News International.  Over the course of this appeal, the Foundation received a takedown for the English Wikipedia article about the same lawsuit. Given that the article was based on secondary reliable sources available in the public domain, we argued that a takedown on these lines would have been unjustified, particularly when no similar orders were issued against the news articles that had reported the same events. Despite this, the Delhi High Court issued an order directing the removal of the article and observed that the article was Prima facie contemptuous and in violation of the sub-judice principle.

In order to preserve its legal remedies, the Foundation complied with the order, a disappointing outcome for the Foundation and volunteer editors who contribute to Wikipedia. 

In March 2025, the Foundation used these legal remedies to file an appeal with the Indian Supreme Court in support of access to knowledge and to restore the article. 

Its position before the apex court was: the Foundation played no role in the creation of the lawsuit’s article as it does not exercise editorial control over Wikipedia’s content. Such an order was inconsistent with established legal precedent regarding public reporting and discussions about ongoing proceedings and could cause chilling effects on freedom of expression and access to knowledge for Wikipedians and beyond. If upheld, the order would limit the ability of volunteers to add content to Wikipedia on notable topics of public interest.

The Supreme Court, in its verdict observed “For the improvement of any system and that includes the judiciary, introspection is the key. That can happen only if there is a robust debate even on issues which are before the court. Both the judiciary and the media are the foundational pillars of democracy which is a basic feature of our Constitution. For a liberal democracy to thrive, both must supplement each other”.

After reviewing its prior judgments, the top court struck down the High Court’s takedown order, enabling the Foundation to reinstate the original article, with the first edit in less than 3 minutes.

Why This Matters: A victory for free speech, for Wikipedia and Beyond!

While prior cases focused on traditional media outlets or individual speakers, this is the first known instance where a host of a crowd-sourced platform -Wikipedia- successfully defended the right of its users to report on important proceedings on its platform. This verdict sends a clear message, i.e., the courts, like other public institutions, see the importance of public discussions, as a means to keep people informed. Documenting ongoing proceedings on Wikipedia, based on neutral, verifiable, and reliably sourced free knowledge, is consistent with the principles of open justice. 

By reaffirming this, the ruling bolsters the efforts of Wikipedia’s volunteers and also the journalists, researchers, legal commentators, and others who contribute to the creation of reliable sources of such information. This is not just a legal relief but an affirmation of the Foundation’s commitment to creating a world where every human being can freely share in the sum of all knowledge. 

The Foundation remains committed to defending the mission of free knowledge and the volunteers who contribute to it. 

The Foundation would like to thank Senior Advocates Mr. Kapil Sibal and Mr. Akhil Sibal for representing the importance of Wikipedia and the contributions of its editors before the Supreme Court of India, with litigation support from Trilegal (Nikhil Narendran and Tine Abraham) and AZB & Partners (Vijayendra Pratap Singh and Abhijnan J), along with their other contributing team members. The Foundation also acknowledges the support of the organizations and individuals (in particular, Software Freedom Law Center, India and Democratic Alliance for Knowledge Freedom), whose efforts helped highlight the broader significance of Wikipedia to the public.