India summons Wikipedia officials after a Arshdeep Singh encyclopedia was edited

India has summoned executives of Wikipedia after a national cricketer’s page on the online encyclopedia was edited following a match with rival Pakistan to claim that he was linked to a Sikh separatist movement, a government source said on Monday.

Indian cricketer Arshdeep Singh had incurred the wrath of Indian social media users since Sunday when he dropped a simple catch in the closing stages of a tense India-Pakistan match.

Singh’s Wikipedia page on Sunday said the Sikh cricketer, born in the northern Indian state of Punjab, had been selected to play for Khalistan, referring to the Sikh freedom movement.

The Wikipedia page has since been rectified.

A senior government source said the federal information technology (IT) ministry had summoned Wikipedia executives over the incident, without elaborating. India’s IT ministry and Wikipedia did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

India’s Economic Times newspaper reported earlier on Monday a government panel will question Wikipedia on how the online encyclopedia is edited and how modifications such as those made to Singh’s page could be allowed.

“The edits have been traced back to servers in the neighboring countries and can cause serious damage to the internal peace and national safety of India,” the newspaper quoted a government official saying.

Wikipedia’s articles, written primarily by unpaid volunteers, are relied on by platforms from Google to Amazon Alexa to give their users information and context.

Emotions run high whenever India plays Pakistan in what is cricket’s most passionate rivalry between the bitter neighbors.

India prevailed in the first group match between the arch-rivals on Aug. 28 but Pakistan swiftly exacted revenge clinching Sunday’s thriller at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.

Arshdeep’s parent’s response over dropped catch against Pakistan

Indian cricketer Arshdeep Singh’s parents have quoted the cricketer as saying that he was “laughing” at the messages received after Sunday’s clash between Pakistan and India, adding that the incident had only “given him more confidence”, Indian media reported.

Singh has incurred the wrath of many social media users when he dropped a simple catch in the closing stages of a tense India-Pakistan match during the ongoing Asia Cup.

His Wikipedia page was also edited to link him to a Sikh separatist movement, which prompted India to summon the executives of the online encyclopedia.

Speaking to The Indian Express, Singh’s parents Darshan Singh and Baljeet Kaur said they spoke to Arshdeep before boarding a flight from Dubai to Chandigarh and were relieved to hear that the cricketer had taken the criticism on the chin.

The pair had attended Sunday’s match at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium
“His exact words were, ‘I am laughing at all these tweets and messages. I am only going to take positives from it. This incident has only given me more confidence,” Darshan quoted his son as saying.

“Arshdeep told us that the whole Indian team is supporting him,” Baljeet told the publication.
Darshan also talked about how he felt as a parent in the current scenario.“As a parent, it feels really bad. He is only 23. I don’t want to say much about trolls. You can’t shut everyone’s mouth. Without fans, there is no game. There are some who stand by you no matter what and others who can’t digest a single loss. But at the end of the day, only one team can win,” he said.

Talking about Sunday’s match, he said Sunday’s “scapegoat” could have been from the Pakistani team if the roles were reversed.“It could have been Fakhar Zaman because of the catch he dropped and the misfield at the end of India’s innings. Every cricketer wants to win the game for his country. No one plays to lose. Arshdeep will only get mentally stronger after this,” Darshan told the publication.

The cricketer’s mother, however, was looking at the silver lining in the whole situation.
“Those who are abusing Arsh must have high hopes from him. They are saying all these things out of emotion. When he does well, all these things will be forgotten,” the report quoted Baljeet as saying.

Emotions run high whenever India plays Pakistan in what is cricket’s most passionate rivalry between the bitter neighbors.

India prevailed in the first group match between the arch-rivals on Aug 28 but Pakistan swiftly exacted revenge clinching Sunday’s thriller at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.