Supreme Court puts ‘social burden’ on Samay Raina after disability joke row

New Delhi: Content creator and stand-up comic Samay Raina has been asked by the Supreme Court of India to use his platforms to spotlight disabled achievers and raise funds for their treatment, in what the court itself called a “social burden, not a penal one.”

The directive comes in a case triggered by Cure SMA Foundation, a parents’ collective for children with Spinal Muscular Atrophy and other rare disorders, which flagged offensive jokes about disability in episodes of Raina’s YouTube show India’s Got Latent. 

One of the episodes featured contestant Santosh Patra making derogatory remarks about persons with disabilities, with the set cleared by judges on the show. Another episode, featuring comedian Banti Banerjee, drew criticism for comments trivialising actor Deepika Padukone’s experience of depression and motherhood after a breakup.

Taking note of the complaint and the wider backlash, a bench led by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud (CJI “Kant” in court reporting) stopped short of criminal punishment but made it clear that creators who monetise edgy content cannot escape responsibility by pleading “freedom of speech.” 

The court said the comedians must host at least two events a month featuring people with disabilities who have achieved significant milestones, and use those events to raise funds for medical treatment, including for SMA patients. 

Calling this a “social burden,” the bench told the influencers that visibility and popularity come with an obligation to give back. “If you have become too popular, then share it with others,” the CJI remarked, as the court nudged them to turn their audience reach into tangible support for a vulnerable community.

Senior advocate Aparajita Singh, assisting the court, submitted case studies and success stories of disabled individuals, which the judges said should be highlighted in upcoming shows.

The bench also asked the Union government to explore creating a dedicated fund for rare-disease treatments and encouraged corporates to contribute, signalling that the obligation would not rest on creators alone.

Raina, who has built a large digital following through chess streams, comedy and long-form YouTube shows, had earlier tried to deflect some of the outrage with a tongue-in-cheek Instagram post asking users to “outrage in my YouTube comments” so he could at least earn ad revenue from the traction. That response is now being contrasted with the Supreme Court’s expectation that he and other comedians use their reach to normalise conversations around disability and fundraising.