Who really owns science? The Sci-Hub ban and the battle for scientific equity.

Abstract

On August 19, 2025, the Delhi High Court ordered the blocking of Sci-Hub, a landmark ruling affecting access to scientific knowledge. Founded by Alexandra Elbakyan, Sci-Hub provided free access to millions of pay-walled research articles. While publishers framed this as copyright infringement, many researchers - particularly those in resource-constrained countries like India - viewed it as a democratising force. The judgment foregrounds a fundamental conflict in contemporary scientific publishing: the privileging of intellectual property enforcement over the ethical principle that publicly funded research should be freely and equitably accessible. Current publishing models often require authors to transfer copyright, pay article processing charges, and leave readers facing costly subscriptions, perpetuating inequity. Although Sci-Hub facilitated research and challenged publisher dominance, it also raised concerns about copyright violations and sustainability. In India, limited R&D funding makes subscriptions unaffordable, underscoring the need for policy solutions such as national subscriptions and mandatory open access. The debate calls for treating knowledge as a public good.