The Supreme Court on Monday admonished several stand-up comedians, including Samay Raina, for making “insensitive jokes" that mocked persons with disabilities, directing them to apologise publicly on their social media platforms.
The remarks came during the hearing of a petition filed by SMA Cure Foundation, which alleged that Raina, Vipun Goyal, Balraj Paramjeet Singh Ghai, Sonali Thakkar, and Nishant Jagdish Tanwar had ridiculed differently-abled individuals in their performances.
“Apology you tendered before the court, give the same before your social media too," a bench comprising Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi told the comedians.
The plea was heard alongside cases involving Ranveer Allahabadia and Ashish Chanchlani, who sought consolidation of FIRs filed against them in connection with the “India’s Got Latent” controversy involving Raina.
Justice Bagchi observed that some influencers are “commercialising speech" and warned against exploiting communities to harm sentiments. “Humor is well taken and is a part of life. We laugh at ourselves. But when we start laughing at others and create a breach of sensibility…on a community plane, when humor is generated, it becomes problematic. And this is what so-called influencers of today should bear in mind. They are commercialising speech. The community at large should not be utilized to hurt the sentiments of certain sections. It’s not only freedom of speech, it’s commercial speech," she said.
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Comedians’ counsel told the court that unconditional apologies had already been tendered. “Next time tell us how much penalty we should impose on you," Justice Kant quipped.
The counsel replied, “We leave it to your lordships. It should go for the benefit of disabled groups."
Justice Kant cautioned, “Today it’s about the disabled, next time it can be women, senior citizens, children…where will this end?"
Senior Advocate Aparajita Singh, representing SMA Cure Foundation, described the court’s direction as a strong message. “Good sense has prevailed (on the comedians), all have apologized. Your lordships have sent a strong message and it has gone home. They have apologized. My suggestion is let the comedians spread awareness about the issue. Let them use their influence to take this issue forward. That would be the best apology," she said.
Counsel for the comedians indicated that they would engage in awareness activities. The court further directed them to issue apologies on their YouTube channels and podcasts.
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