In a sternly worded directive against comedian Samay Raina and YouTubers Ranveer Allahbadia and Ashish Chanchlani, the Supreme Court ruled that all three individuals be made to pay a fine of ₹3 lakh each for not complying with its previous orders. The case emanated from a hearing following comments made on "India's Got Latent," which were found to be jokes about Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) and people with disabilities in a petition lodged by the Cure SMA India Foundation.

Alongside levying the fine, the court stated that it had serious concerns regarding the violation of its previous assurances. Besides, the court passed several other directives concerning awareness about people with disabilities and SMA patients.

Supreme Court Pulls Up Influencers Over Non-Compliance

A bench consisting of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V. Mohana found that Samay Raina, Ranveer Allahbadia, and Ashish Chanchlani had not complied with earlier orders from the court.

The court bench made strict observations during the proceedings that public figures could not take it for granted that they were immune from laws. It was necessary that commitments made to the court be adhered to in full letter and spirit.

Samay Raina Faces Strongest Observations From The Bench

In particular, the Supreme Court took exception to the conduct of Samay Raina since he had not complied with a previous directive that invited persons with disabilities to his program.

The court observed that there was no reason for it to doubt that the comedian had failed to fulfill the promises made before the court. This constituted a substantial part of the order issued by the court during the proceedings.

Court Orders Awareness Programmes For Disability Inclusion

In addition to a fine of ₹3 lakhs to each of them, the court asked the three content makers to air two programmes per month on how people with disabilities can succeed and have achieved success in their lives.

As stated in the ruling, it was meant to create an awareness for funding of people who are affected by diseases like Spinal Muscular Atrophy.

Case Originated From India's Got Latent Controversy

The case is a result of a petition that has been filed by Cure SMA India Foundation in response to certain jokes made by the television show called “India’s Got Latent” about the expenses of treating SMA and the insults directed at people with disabilities.

Through its latest ruling, the Supreme Court has sent out another reminder that public figures have much more responsibility in regard to consequences of what they say and do.