Indian high courts show continued enthusiasm for citing Wikipedia
Live MintSince 2011 the Supreme Court of India seems to have got the message that relying on Wikipedia is simply not a good idea. In no fewer than 11 reported cases, most related to taxation, the Supreme Court of India has placed express reliance upon a definition of a word or a phrase found in Wikipedia. In State of UP v Mohan Meakin Breweries the Supreme Court checks both Wikipedia and the more authoritative Encyclopaedia Britannica before extracting from Wikipedia, simply because it’s shorter. And ironically, the most popular reference to a Wikipedia article seems to be common law marriage, following the Supreme Court’s lead in D Velusamy v D Patchaiammal. It is high time that high courts follow the Supreme Court’s example and abandon references to Wikipedia as an authority on anything.
History of this topic
"Why Touchy About Comments On Court Proceedings?" Supreme Court On Delhi HC Order To Remove Wikipedia Page On ANI's Defamation Suit
Live Law
Wikipedia under Centre’s scrutiny for complaints of biased and inaccurate information
Live Mint
Delhi High Court cautions Wikipedia for non-compliance of order
The Hindu
'Wikipedia not dependable; can promote misleading info': SC
Op India
Online sources such as Wikipedia not completely dependable: SC
Hindustan Times
How Wikipedia Can Influence Judges’ Legal Writing
Slate
A vicious culture war is tearing through Wikipedia
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