India’s Got Latent row: Supreme Court to hear Ranveer Allahbadia’s plea today
The Supreme Court will hear YouTuber Ranveer Allahbadia’s plea today in connection with the FIRs registered against him over the controversy that erupted on an episode of ‘India’s Got Latent’ show. The influencer had approached the Supreme Court seeking the clubbing of multiple FIRs filed against him for obscene remarks on comedian Samay Raina’s YouTube show.
At least three FIRs have been filed against Allahbadia so far – one in Assam, another in Mumbai and a fresh FIR was filed against him in Jaipur on Monday. Mumbai and Guwahati Police said that the popular influencer is “continuously out of contact”.
A massive controversy erupted over Allahbadia’s remarks on “parents and sex” on ‘India’s Got Latent’. The show has since been removed from YouTube and Allahbadia issued an apology, saying the remark was “not just inappropriate, it wasn’t even funny. Comedy is not my forte. I’m just here to say sorry.”
The Maharashtra Cyber Department summoned a total of 42 individuals, including artists, producers, and influencers involved in the YouTube show. “Prima facie accused include Samay Raina, Apoorva Mukhija, and Ranveer Allahbadia. Statements have already been recorded from Devesh Dixit, Raghu Ram, and one other individual,” said Yashasvi Yadav, Inspector General, Maharashtra Cyber Cell.
The Maharashtra Cyber cell is likely to issue an arrest warrant against the primary accused if they don’t cooperate with agencies and if they don’t show up before the agencies, sources told India Today.
On Friday, Abhinav Chandrachud, on behalf of Allahbadia, sought an urgent listing of the matter, which Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna declined, saying the case would be assigned to a bench and taken up within two to three days.
The Maharashtra Cyber Department, Guwahati Police, Mumbai Police, Jaipur Police and National Commission for Women (NCW) have issued summons to Allahbadia in connection with the case but all the summons went unanswered. The Maharashtra Cyber Department issued fresh summons, asking him to appear on February 24.
Allahbadia informed NCW that he had been receiving death threats and requested a new hearing date after three weeks. The Commission accepted his request and rescheduled the hearing for March 6.
Along with Allahbadia, multiple FIRs have been filed against YouTubers Ashish Chanchlani, Jaspreet Singh, and Apoorva Makhija aka The Rebel Kid.
