The Supreme Court on Thursday, November 27, directed comedian and YouTuber Samay Raina, along with three other comedians, to invite persons with disabilities who have inspiring success stories to appear on their shows, helping raise funds for timely and effective treatment of disabled individuals, according to ANI.
The directive follows a plea filed by Cure SMA Foundation, which sought action against comedians for making insensitive remarks about disabled people.
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As reported by LiveLaw, the plea stated, “We are a charitable trust, run by the parents of the affected disabled...in one of the programmes of Samay Raina, the children were ridiculed.... my lords may see.”
Chief Justice of India Surya Kant noted that senior advocate Aparajita Singh had submitted a brief note highlighting the success stories of individuals who were subjected to inappropriate and avoidable YouTube shows by certain creators.
Surya Kant said that it was clearly understood that a dedicated fund should be set up by the concerned ministry, which could then be publicised to encourage corporations to contribute towards treatment for persons with disabilities, including those affected by spinal muscular atrophy (SMA).
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The CJI added that the Court expected a few such events to be organised before the matter was heard next. He clarified that the Court was placing a social obligation, not a punishment, on the comedians, acknowledging their influential positions.
SC directs comedians to turn influence into social responsibility
"We hope and expect that such few memorable events will take place before we hear the matter next. It’s a social burden we are putting on you (comedians) not penal burden. You are all well-placed persons in the society. If you have become too popular, then share it with others,” CJI Kant told ANI.
Previously, the Supreme Court had summoned seven comedians, including Samay Raina, on two separate occasions over allegedly insensitive remarks about persons with disabilities. The Court had later instructed the comedians to post apologies on social media for their offensive comments against the specially-abled community.
