WIKIMEDIA FOUNDATION INC vs ANI MEDIA PRIVATE LIMITED & ORS.

Judgment text excerpt

$~128 * IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI Date of decision: 8th April, 2025 + FAO(OS) 41/2025 WIKIMEDIA FOUNDATION INC .....Appellant Through: Mr. Akhil Sibal, Sr. Adv. with Ms. Tine Abraham, Mr. Vijayendra Pratap Singh, Ms. Shivani Rawat, Mr. Thomas J. Vallianeth, Mr.Abhijnan Jha, Ms. Shubhangni Jain, Mr. Bakhshind Singh, Mr.Pranav Tomar, Mr. Krishnesh Bapat, Advocates. versus ANI MEDIA PRIVATE LIMITED & ORS. .....Respondents Through: Mr. Sidhant Kumar, Mr. Akshit Mago, Mr. Om Batra and Ms. Anshika Saxena, Advocates. CORAM: JUSTICE PRATHIBA M. SINGH JUSTICE RAJNEESH KUMAR GUPTA Prathiba M. Singh, J. (Oral) 1. This hearing has been done through hybrid mode. CM APPLs. 20471-73/2025 (for exemptions) 2. Allowed, subject to all just exceptions. Applications are disposed of. CM APPL. 20470/2025 & FAO(OS) 41/2025 Background: 3. The present appeal has been filed on behalf of the Appellant- Wikimedia Foundation Inc. inter alia, challenging the impugned order dated 2nd April, 2025 in CS (OS) 524/2024 titled, ANI Media Pvt. Ltd. v. Wikimedia Foundation Inc. & Ors., by which the ld. Single Judge has Signature Not Verified Signed By:RAHUL FAO(OS) 41/2025 Page 1 of 23 Signing Date:09.04.2025 10:58:08 disposed of the injunction application filed by the Asian News International Media Pvt. Ltd. (hereinafter, ‘ANI’) seeking interim injunction, in the following terms: “24. According to the aforementioned decision of this Court, 'Single Publication Rule' only applies when the second publication is a verbatim reproduction of the first publication. After perusing the Articles which were being cited by Defendants No. 2 to 4 while making the impugned statements, this Court opines that the impugned statements on the Plaintiff's page are not verbatim reproduction of such articles, and the