Today, On 9th May, The Supreme Court criticised the Delhi High Court, saying it’s “not court’s job to order media to delete content”, as it set-aside the Wikipedia takedown order in ANI’s defamation case against Wikipedia.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court set-aside a Delhi High Court directive that ordered the Wikimedia Foundation to remove the page titled ‘Asian News International vs. Wikimedia Foundation.’ This page provided information regarding the legal battle between ANI and Wikipedia.
The Delhi High Court had previously raised concerns about the page, stating that the discussion of the Court’s observations could be considered contempt of court.
However, a Supreme Court Bench comprising Justice Abhay S Oka and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan granted Wikipedia’s appeal, effectively nullifying the High Court’s takedown order.
The Supreme Court stipulated,
“Such an order should be subject to the twin test of necessity and proportionality to be applied only in cases where there is real and substantial risk of prejudice to the proper administration of justice, or to the fairness of the trial.”
Importantly, the Court emphasized that it is not the judiciary’s role to instruct the media to remove or delete content.
The Court further underlined,
“In a liberal democracy, judiciary and media must support each other.”
The Court clarified that the media retains the right to contest such orders through appropriate legal channels.
It further stated,
“A postponement order is not a punitive measure, but is a preventive measure.”
The Supreme Court had previously voiced criticism of the Delhi High Court’s decision to order the page’s removal. The top Court had earlier criticized the Delhi High Court for ordering takedown of the page.
It had remarked that a takedown of a report about the High Court proceedings cannot be ordered just because the High Court judges do not like it.
The apex court had said,
“Suppose somebody says something about proceedings before this Court. Only on the ground that we don’t like it we cannot direct removal. Only if we are satisfied the well settled place of contempt, we can direct. If we see that it is contemptuous, we can do it. But only because we don’t like it, we cannot order removal,”
The case stems from a lawsuit filed by ANI against the Wikimedia Foundation, alleging that defamatory edits were permitted on ANI’s Wikipedia page. These edits included references to the news agency as a “propaganda tool” for the current Central government.
The High Court, On July 9, 2024, summoned Wikipedia and directed it to reveal information about three individuals who made the edits on ANI’s Wikipedia page. Subsequently, ANI filed a contempt of court application, claiming non-compliance with the order.
Justice Navin Chawla expressed strong disapproval of Wikipedia’s actions on September 5 and mandated that an authorized representative of Wikipedia appear in court on October 25.
Wikipedia then appealed to a division bench. During the proceedings, the division bench noted the creation of a dedicated Wikipedia page about the case itself. The High Court strongly objected to Wikipedia’s decision to allow the publication of this page.
The bench, led by Chief Justice Manmohan (who has since been elevated to the Supreme Court) and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela, ordered Wikipedia to remove the page related to ANI’s case.
Despite complying with the order, Wikipedia also appealed to the Supreme Court.
Notably, the High Court had issued an interim order on April 2, directing Wikipedia to remove the allegedly defamatory statements from ANI’s Wikipedia page.
This order was also set-aside by the Supreme Court on April 17. The defamation suit will now be reheard by a single-judge of the High Court.
Case Title: Wikimedia Foundation Inc & Ors vs. ANI Media Pvt. Ltd.