The Supreme Court on Tuesday, 14 July imposed a cost of ₹3 lakh each on comedian Samay Raina and four other stand-up comedians, observing that Raina had 'taken the Court for a ride' by brazenly violating undertakings given in connection with insensitive jokes targeting persons suffering from spinal muscular atrophy (SMA). The bench, led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant alongside Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V. Mohana, passed the order after being informed that the comedians had failed to honour commitments made before the apex court.

What the Court Found

The CJI Kant-led bench recorded sharp displeasure after learning that Raina had neither contacted the Cure SMA Foundation of India nor reached out to persons suffering from the rare genetic disorder — both of which had been explicitly directed by the court. Raina's counsel sought to justify the delay by claiming a compliance affidavit had been filed, but the court found no such document on record.

'We have no reason to doubt that Samay Raina has taken the Court for a ride. He is in brazen violation of statements/undertakings given before this Court,' the bench stated. 'The misconduct is sought to be compounded by stating that a compliance affidavit was filed yesterday, however, no affidavit has been filed,' it added.

Who Was Penalised and the Warning Issued

Beyond Raina, an identical cost of ₹3 lakh each was imposed on comedians Vipul Goyal, Balraj Paramjeet Singh Ghai, Sonali Thakkar alias Sonali Aditya Desai, and Nishant Jagdish Tanwar. The bench had initially considered imposing ₹10 lakh before settling on the uniform ₹3 lakh figure. Raina was directed to deposit the cost within two weeks and given 15 days to file a compliance affidavit. 'If you don't comply, it will become ₹30 lakh,' the court warned.

Background: The SMA Jokes Case

The matter stems from a petition filed by the Cure SMA Foundation of India, which objected to offensive remarks made by the comedians about patients with SMA — a rare genetic disorder — including a particularly egregious reference to a two-month-old infant requiring a life-saving injection costing approximately ₹16 crore. In August 2024, the Supreme Court directed all five comedians to issue public apologies on social media, which they subsequently tendered in writing before the court.

On 27 November 2025, the court recorded the comedians' voluntary undertaking to organise at least two fundraising events per month — physically or online — for a corpus supporting SMA treatment, and permitted them to invite Cure SMA Foundation representatives to their platforms to raise awareness and funds. It was these commitments that the court found had gone unmet.

Broader Issues Before the Court

Senior advocate Aparajita Singh, appearing for the Cure SMA Foundation, confirmed before the bench that Raina had made no contact with the Foundation despite the court's earlier directions. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta separately flagged the use of the term 'disabled persons' in the comedians' affidavits, submitting that 'specially abled persons' is the appropriate terminology.

The underlying writ petition also addresses the prohibitive cost of SMA treatment and seeks enhanced financial assistance for affected patients. The proceedings have prompted the Supreme Court to examine questions of dignity, free speech, and the regulation of harmful online content. Notably, the Union government has informed the court that it is preparing draft guidelines for an effective regulatory mechanism governing obscene and harmful content on social media platforms.

The matter will next come up for hearing to assess compliance; coercive action has been explicitly threatened if the comedians fail to meet the court's directions.