The Supreme Court has strongly rebuked comedian Samay Raina and YouTuber Ranveer Allahbadia, along with other comedians, for making insensitive jokes about disabled people. The court has directed them to post a video apology on their social media platforms. The bench, led by Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi, asserted that making money by cracking such jokes is unacceptable. The court also stated that the question of penalty or costs would be decided later.
The case originated from a petition filed by the SMA Cure Foundation, which accused several comedians, including Samay Raina, Vipun Goyal, Balraj Paramjit Singh Ghai, Sonali Thakkar, and Nishant Jagdish Tanwar, of making offensive jokes about people with disabilities. The foundation also highlighted jokes mocking blind individuals and an infant with Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA), a rare and severe genetic disorder. Senior Advocate Aparajita Singh, representing the Cure SMA Foundation, emphasized the need for content guidelines to protect the dignity of specially-abled persons.
Justice Bagchi described the speech used by influencers and other creators online as "commercial speech," asserting that this form of expression carries a responsibility to ensure it does not "hurt the sentiments of certain sections". The court also addressed the Union government regarding the development of guidelines for online and internet speech. It clarified that these guidelines should not prohibit freedom of speech and expression but should work to ensure that controversies like the one involving Allahbadia do not occur.
This is not the first time Ranveer Allahbadia has faced legal trouble for his content. Earlier in 2025, he sparked controversy with his remarks about parents and sex on Samay Raina's show 'India's Got Latent'. The Supreme Court had previously granted Allahbadia interim protection from arrest but called his remarks "vulgar" and said he had a "dirty mind" that shamed society. Following the backlash from the 'India's Got Latent' episode, Samay Raina removed all episodes of the show from his YouTube channel.
The court's recent directive underscores the growing concern over offensive content on social media platforms and the responsibility of influencers. Justice Kant remarked, "The degree of repentance should be higher than the degree of offending, it's like purging contempt”. The court has asked Raina and the other comedians to apprise the court on how much penalty they were willing to pay, which in turn can be used for the treatment of people suffering from rare genetic disorders like spinal muscular atrophy (SMA).
The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has been instructed to establish content guidelines. The Attorney General stated that the guidelines would not be an absolute gag order and the freedom of expression would be maintained. The court stressed that when speech is commercialized, it cannot hurt the sentiments of a community. The Supreme Court's intervention highlights the need for a balance between freedom of expression and the responsibility to avoid causing harm or offense, especially towards vulnerable groups.
