New Delhi, Feb 21: The Supreme Court on Friday agreed to examine a plea filed by popular YouTuber Ashish Chanchlani seeking to quash or transfer to Mumbai an FIR registered against him in Guwahati following the vulgar and crass comments made about parents on the comedy show “India’s Got Latent”.
A bench of Justices Surya Kant and N.K. Singh issued notice on Chanchlani’s plea and tagged it with the pending plea of prime accused Ranveer Allahbadia. The apex court took note of the fact that the Guwahati High Court on Tuesday had already granted interim relief to Chanchlani, asking him to appear before the Investigating Officer within ten days. Ashish Chanchlani appeared on Samay Raina’s show “India’s Got Latent” along with other content creators like Ranveer Allahbadia, Jaspreet Singh, and Apoorva Mukhija.
A controversy erupted after Allahbadia, during the show, asked a female contestant: “Would you rather watch your parents have sex every day for the rest of your life or join in once and stop it forever?” The distasteful remark immediately sparked outrage among viewers and critics alike and following the controversy, Raina took down all episodes of the show from YouTube.
A formal complaint was filed with both the Mumbai Police Commissioner and the Maharashtra Women’s Commission. The Guwahati Crime Branch registered a case under Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS), 2023, the IT Act, 2000, the Cinematograph Act, 1952, and the Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act,1986. In a post on X, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said: “Guwahati police has registered an FIR against certain Youtubers and social Influencers.
They are Ashish Chanchlani, Jaspreet Singh, Apoorva Mukhija, Ranveer Allahabadia, and Samay Raina and others for promoting obscenity and engaging in sexually explicit and vulgar discussion in a show titled ‘India’s Got Latent’.” Allahbadia, who is known for his BeerBiceps brand, also issued an apology admitting that it was “not appropriate” and “not even funny.”
The Supreme Court granted him interim relief after he filed a petition under Article 31 seeking protection from coercive action and challenging the multiple FIRs lodged against him across various states.
IANS