Wikipedia Faces Scrutiny from Ministry of Information Over Political Bias and Accountability
Mumbai: The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) has issued a notice to Wikipedia, the globally collaborative online encyclopedia, questioning why it should not be regarded as a publisher. Wikipedia, created and edited by volunteers worldwide and hosted by the Wikimedia Foundation, has come under scrutiny following complaints of political bias and factual inaccuracies.
The notice comes amid a legal battle between Wikipedia and Asian News International (ANI), which alleges that Wikipedia has published defamatory content, accusing ANI of being a government propaganda tool. The Delhi High Court has labelled Wikipedia’s open editing model as “dangerous,” highlighting that anyone with an account can contribute to or modify content.
The Ministry’s notice raises the question of whether Wikipedia should be classified as a “Publisher,” making it subject to legal accountability, rather than a “social media intermediary.” Unlike publishers, social media intermediaries are immune from prosecution for content posted by users unless it is proven to be false or constitutes fake news.
In the ANI case, despite a court request for Wikipedia to disclose the identities of the editors involved, Wikipedia has yet to respond, adding to the Ministry’s concerns about accountability and transparency.
