New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday directed five comedians, including Samay Raina, to publish their apology on their YouTube channels and other social media platforms for making insensitive jokes about persons with disabilities (PwDs).
A Bench comprising Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi was hearing a petition filed by SMA Cure Foundation, represented by Senior Advocate Aparajita Singh, which flagged offensive jokes made by Samay Raina, Vipul Goyal, Balraj Paramjeet Singh Ghai, Sonali Thakkar, Sonali Aditya Desai, and Nishant Jagdish Tanwar.
The NGO also sought guidelines to prevent lampooning of PwDs in the name of humour.
The Bench noted that while the comedians had expressed regret, the degree of apology must match the harm caused.
“The degree of repentance should be higher than the degree of offending; it’s like purging contempt,” Justice Kant remarked.
The court also said it would decide the penalty to be imposed on the comedians at the next hearing.
The Attorney General for India, R. Venkataramani, informed the Court that draft guidelines to address such concerns would be placed on record while clarifying that a “complete gag” on humour was not possible.
The Court observed that while humour is an essential part of life, it cannot come at the cost of dignity. “Humour is well taken; we laugh at ourselves. But when humour breaches sensibilities on a community level, it becomes problematic.
Influencers must remember they are commercialising speech, and communities should not be used to hurt sentiments,” Justice Bagchi observed.
Justice Kant further suggested that penal consequences under the IT Act should be considered and asked the comedians to also use their platforms to spread awareness about disability rights.
“Go apologise on your podcasts. Then consider what Aparajita has suggested. Then tell us about the cost/penalty you are willing to bear,” he told the comedians.
The case was heard along with petitions filed by YouTubers Ranveer Allahabadia and Ashish Chanchlani for the clubbing of multiple FIRs lodged against them in India’s Got Latent controversy.
While Allahabadia earlier secured interim protection and release of his passport, Chanchlani obtained relief from the Gauhati High Court, with the Supreme Court issuing notice on his plea.
The Court reiterated that the issue goes beyond free speech, as it involves the right to dignity of PwDs under Article 21 of the Constitution.
“Article 19, which provides freedom of speech and expression, cannot overpower Article 21, the right to life and dignity,” Justice Kant observed, stressing that the matter required a careful balance.