The Indian government issued a formal notice to Wikipedia on Tuesday, November 5, expressing worries about bias and inaccuracies in the online encyclopedia. The notice pointed out that a small group controls the editorial decisions on the platform, raising questions about its reliability.
The government is also asking why Wikipedia should not be classified as a publisher instead of simply an intermediary. Wikipedia is known for allowing volunteers to create and edit articles on a vast array of topics, including notable figures and current issues.
Currently, Wikipedia is facing legal challenges in India, where it is accused of providing misleading and defamatory information. This notice follows a September ruling by the Delhi High Court, which criticized Wikipedia’s open editing system as “dangerous.” The court made these comments during a defamation lawsuit filed by a news agency against the platform, noting its surprise that “anybody” could modify a Wikipedia entry. The judges underscored the risks of unrestricted editing, especially concerning sensitive information about people or organizations.
In response to the court’s concerns, Wikipedia's legal team assured the judges that users are required to follow legal guidelines when adding or changing content. The platform emphasized that it has policies in place to manage user contributions and to ensure they comply with the law.
Since its launch in the early 2000s, Wikipedia has aimed to provide free access to knowledge. Over the last two decades, it has grown significantly, now hosting over 56 million articles in more than 300 languages, with about 89 percent of its content available in languages other than English.
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