SUPREME COURT PULLS UP COMEDIAN SAMAY RAINA FOR INSENSITIVE CONTENT ON DISABLED PERSONS
The Supreme Court of India has issued strict directions to comedian Samay Raina after taking objection to certain jokes he made about people with disabilities. A bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi instructed Raina and four other comedians — Balraj Paramjeet Singh Ghai, Sonali Thakkar, Nishant Jagdish Tanwar, and Vipul Goyal — to actively support the treatment of disabled individuals by raising funds and highlighting inspiring stories of differently-abled people in their upcoming shows.
The matter relates to earlier content released by Raina on his now-discontinued YouTube program India’s Got Latent, where he allegedly made insensitive remarks involving patients with severe conditions, including infants suffering from Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA). His videos reportedly also included jokes targeting blind and cross-eyed individuals, which caused widespread criticism and prompted the Supreme Court to intervene. The court had previously issued notices and demanded public apologies from all involved comedians.
During Thursday’s proceedings, the bench proposed that the comedians should invite persons with disabilities — especially SMA patients — to speak on their platforms to create awareness instead of ridicule. Their lawyers agreed to carry out the suggestion. CJI Surya Kant also raised the possibility of forming a new law similar to the SC/ST Act that would treat derogatory humour aimed at disabled individuals as a punishable offence.
He noted that comedy should never compromise someone’s dignity, and emphasised that entertainers must be more careful in their conduct, both inside India and abroad.
In a joint statement issued earlier, Raina and the other comedians expressed deep regret for the hurt caused and assured that they would be more mindful in the future. They also pledged to contribute towards spreading awareness about the challenges faced by specially-abled people.
The controversy has sparked a broader debate on social media about ethical boundaries in comedy, the responsibility of public figures, and the need for greater sensitivity when portraying vulnerable communities.
