Court: The petitioner’s lawyer stated that the insulting remarks made by Mr. Samay Raina and other comedians mocking those with impairments amount to “hate speech.”
Describing the jokes made by stand-up comedian Samay Raina and others attacking individuals with disabilities and rare diseases as “deeply disturbing,” the Supreme Court declared that it will attentively scrutinise the “individual conduct” engaged in the affair.
On Tuesday, while hearing a petition filed by the CURE SMA (Spinal Muscular Atrophy) Foundation of India, a bench of Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi instructed the stand-up comedians to respond to the petition, which highlights their insensitive jokes, and ordered them to be present again in the next hearing, scheduled three weeks from now.
Representing the foundation, Senior Advocate Aparajita Singh maintained that the abusive language used by Mr. Raina and others to insult disabled individuals amounts to “hate speech,” which is not protected under Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution that guarantees freedom of expression.
The comedians were ordered to face legal action for their offensive comments after the top court previously vehemently objected to such statements. The comedians’ in-court appearance was recorded on Tuesday, and the bench requested that they provide a written response within two weeks.
The federal government was also instructed by the bench to make sure that rules governing content on social media and over-the-top (OTT) platforms are in keeping with constitutional principles, balancing the rights of citizens and freedom of speech.
Content Standards and a Wider Background
The Supreme Court previously suggested that the government think about releasing guidelines to control offensive and vulgar content on social media and over-the-top (OTT) platforms during the hearing of a case involving contentious statements made by YouTuber Ranveer Allahbadia on the show “India’s Got Latent.”
According to Justice Surya Kant,
“There must be unambiguous rules that are consistent with constitutional principles that address not only individual freedom but also where that freedom ends and responsibilities begin.
We want to encourage frank discussion about this.
He made it clear that the court would discuss the guidelines in public and solicit feedback from all parties involved.
Comedians Are Summoned for Making Negative Remarks
Samay Raina and four other stand-up comedians and influencers were called by the Supreme Court on May 5 for their derogatory and abusive remarks about individuals with disabilities.
Any speech that disparages or attacks a particular population or segment of society shall be suppressed, the highest court had adamantly declared.