The Supreme Court on Tuesday imposed a cost of Rs 3 lakh on comedian Samay Raina, observing that he had allegedly made false statements before the court and failed to comply with its earlier directions in connection with proceedings arising out of the India’s Got Latent controversy.A bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice J.V. Mohana directed Raina to deposit the amount within two weeks, warning that coercive action would be initiated in case of non-compliance.“You have taken the court for a ride,” the bench remarked while passing the order.The matter came up during the hearing of petitions filed by content creators Ranveer Allahbadia and Ashish Chanchlani, along with the Cure SMA Foundation, following the controversy surrounding remarks made on the first season of Raina’s India’s Got Latent.During the proceedings, Senior Advocate Aparajita Singh informed the court that Raina had allegedly failed to reach out to the Cure SMA Foundation or individuals suffering from Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA), despite assurances given before the court.“Samay Raina is doing shows, but has not contacted the SMA Foundation or persons suffering from SMA as per the court’s order. I don’t know what kind of youth icon he is. I shudder to think,” Singh submitted.Appearing for the Centre, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta also raised concerns over Raina’s conduct. Referring to one of the comedian’s recent performances, Mehta said Raina appeared to mock the ongoing legal proceedings.
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“Recently, he started a new show. He said that now, at the beginning, he is doing something which he did not do in the last series. He hangs nimbu-mirchi. He did not name anyone, but the reference was quite visible,” Mehta told the court.The Solicitor General said he had initially chosen not to raise the issue, but did so after learning that Raina had allegedly not complied with the court’s directions regarding the SMA Foundation.Raina’s counsel responded by stating that the failure to contact the foundation was not driven by ego and assured the court that efforts would be made to persuade the comedian to comply.
