On Monday, August 25, the Supreme Court told stand-up comedian Samay Raina and four others to issue an “unconditional apology” for making offensive comments about people with disabilities.
Alongside Raina, comedians Vipul Goyal, Balraj Paramjeet Singh Ghai, Nishant Jagdish Tanwar, and Sonali Thakkar (also known as Sonali Aditya Desai) were ordered to publicly apologize on their YouTube channels for their remarks, which many felt were insensitive toward the disabled community, according to ANI.
Lawyers Click Selfies With Samay Raina
In a video going viral on the Internet, a bunch of lawyers can be seen clicking selfies with Samay Raina and the comedian happily obliged.
At one moment, a reporter asked Samay Raina if he would like to say anything to which the comedian quipped, “Bola toh, aap bahut ache lag rahe hein.”
Youtuber and Comedian @ReheSamay arrives at the Supreme Court, where his case will be heard shortly. Lawyers are taking selfie with him. Hope Honourable Judge will not do the same too.pic.twitter.com/Ur2IaXj9FS
— NCMIndia Council For Men Affairs (@NCMIndiaa) August 25, 2025
aadhe to selfie le rhe 😬
— Praveen Singh (@ErPrAvEnSiNgH) August 25, 2025
Court raps comedians over free speech
A bench led by Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi pressed the central government to develop new rules aimed at stopping speech that targets or mocks people with disabilities, women, children, or the elderly. The court made it clear: freedom of speech doesn’t protect commercial content that insults or harms the dignity of vulnerable groups.
Justice Joymalya Bagchi, speaking during the hearing, recognized that humor is part of life and self-deprecation is normal. But, he warned, when jokes target others, especially on a large, public scale it crosses a line. “When humour is generated on a community plane, it becomes problematic,” he said, as reported by Live Law.
Justice Bagchi also cautioned today’s influencers, reminding them that their speech isn’t just personal expression—it’s content for profit. “The community at large should not be utilised to hurt the sentiments of certain sections,” he stated. “It’s not just freedom of speech, it’s commercial speech.”
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